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The Royal Ballet: The Sleeping Beauty performances, 2016-2017


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Seeing Takada and Hay in the afternoon and Naghdi and Ball in the evening does not sound like too much of a burden to bear. Alison, I would suggest missing the Prologue for one of the performances except that we none of us  can guess who is likely to be cast in the Fairy Variations with either cast. There is no guarantee that the dancers who performed them at the pre Christmas Beauty at which Hay made his debut as the Prince will all appear in the same roles at the matinee. With such young casts in the lead roles at both performances you don't know whether management will decide to cast dancers who are experienced in performing the roles of Lilac Fairy, Bluebird and Florine and the Fairy Variations at both performances or whether they will decide to "blood" some of the company's youngest talent during the course of the day.

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Talking about cast slips I've never had a problem getting hold of them.....except there must be occasions ....even if rare ...where a dancer is injured in the last hour run up to a performance so may be impossible to get a cast slip change out in time in such circumstances. I suspect if it was someone in a major role thus injured an announcement would be made just before curtain up but I wonder if it was someone in a smaller role whether they would bother to announce this and so sometimes confusions can arise of just who was dancing!! I can think of at least once when this has happened for me.

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  • 1 month later...

If there was one it was quickly snapped up and now gone :(  The Naghdi/Ball shows are completely sold out. 

 

For Hayward/Campbell there are still tickets left for both shows. 

 

PS. I came across the Dance Europe magazine last week and they published an interview with both Naghdi and Hayward about their upcoming debut as Aurora - Naghdi's an especially lengthy and informative interview.

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PS. I came across the Dance Europe magazine last week and they published an interview with both Naghdi and Hayward about their upcoming debut as Aurora - Naghdi's an especially lengthy and informative interview.

 

Yes, Yasmine's interview is very illuminating. It is interesting also to read that she and Matthew are working with Alexander Agadzhanov and that Francesca and Alexander Campbell are working with Lesley Collier and Jonathan Cope.

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I am off to see this on Monday, and was hoping to find out who would be dancing the Lilac Fairy, Bluebirds and so on.  I was hoping this information might be available by clicking on the names of individual dancers, but as far as I can see, the only person who is dancing/has danced the LF in the most recent production is Laura McCulloch.

 

I was wondering who was responsible for updating their details on the ROH web pages?  Because if those in charge of these things won't list the casting for these important roles under the cast details for the ballet, they could at least add it somewhere else.  I can't believe that they don't know by now who will be dancing.    

 

Am I being an idiot?  Is the information on there somewhere, and I am just not looking in the right place? 

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I am off to see this on Monday, and was hoping to find out who would be dancing the Lilac Fairy, Bluebirds and so on.  I was hoping this information might be available by clicking on the names of individual dancers, but as far as I can see, the only person who is dancing/has danced the LF in the most recent production is Laura McCulloch.

 

I was wondering who was responsible for updating their details on the ROH web pages?  Because if those in charge of these things won't list the casting for these important roles under the cast details for the ballet, they could at least add it somewhere else.  I can't believe that they don't know by now who will be dancing.    

 

Am I being an idiot?  Is the information on there somewhere, and I am just not looking in the right place? 

 

The website pages are all linked, so if a dancer is listed on the production page as dancing a role, it will also show on that dancer's profile page.

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The website pages are all linked, so if a dancer is listed on the production page as dancing a role, it will also show on that dancer's profile page.

 

problem arises though when none of the casting is up on the performance/booking page, so no links to dancers (and so no links back from dancer's page). The casting info seems to be pretty minimal these days - often just the lead couple (as indeed it is with Beauty; I'm sure they used to list Lilacs and Carabosses in previous runs, though don't quote me on it). So Fonty, you're not being daft - there is no info!

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Oh, ok, thanks.  I wasn't sure if the performance and individual dancer pages were linked or not.  I can see that perhaps they don't want to put the casting for those roles on the performances pages too far in advance, when perhaps the only thing worked out is the schedule for the Principals.  But at this stage of the proceedings, I would have thought it would be a simple piece of programming to put the unlinked info on the appropriate dancer's page.

 

It does seem a bit daft that apart from the dancers themselves, nobody else is apparently allowed to know.  

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Oh, ok, thanks.  I wasn't sure if the performance and individual dancer pages were linked or not.  I can see that perhaps they don't want to put the casting for those roles on the performances pages too far in advance, when perhaps the only thing worked out is the schedule for the Principals.  But at this stage of the proceedings, I would have thought it would be a simple piece of programming to put the unlinked info on the appropriate dancer's page.

 

It does seem a bit daft that apart from the dancers themselves, nobody else is apparently allowed to know.  

 

The problem for the company is that the number of people who want to know this information is small relative to the full audience size.  Also, these roles can be shifted about at the last minute, even if someone needs to be taken off Lilac Fairy, for instance, to play a lesser role due to illness or injury (as actually happened recently).

 

They need to balance the need to announce changes, change cast slips etc. with the perceived need for the audience to know casting in advance.

 

If I want to know when a specific dancer is due to dance a specific role, I ask them or phone the ballet office.

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The problem for the company is that the number of people who want to know this information is small relative to the full audience size.  Also, these roles can be shifted about at the last minute, even if someone needs to be taken off Lilac Fairy, for instance, to play a lesser role due to illness or injury (as actually happened recently).

 

They need to balance the need to announce changes, change cast slips etc. with the perceived need for the audience to know casting in advance.

 

 

But this has always been the case, and we used to be told the Lilac Fairy and Carabosse casting (and more, I think) in advance.

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I'm pretty sure that in recent times that has not been the case.

 

Sadly, it hasn't.  When I first started going to the ROH in the late 70s, and for a good while thereafter, they always used to announce LF and Carabosse in advance. 

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Really looking forward to tomorrow's matinée. There is always something special about a debut in an iconic role and that Hayward will be joined by Campbell is almost too joyous to contemplate and count myself very lucky also to be seeing Naghdi and Ball on Saturday.

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Well, sorry to keep going on about it, but the Lilac Fairy is an important role, and personally I don't think it should be subject to last minute changes because the intended dancer is now doing something else.  Yes, of course injuries happen, but the company should be prepared for this and plan ahead.  It makes it seem as though any female can be slotted in at short notice, which is simply not the case.  I have seen some performances that could only be described as woeful in recent times.

 

It is not fair on the dancer, who may be under rehearsed, or just not really capable, and it is certainly not fair on the audience.

 

I shall now climb down from my soapbox and stalk off.........

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Now time to discuss the actual shows, perhaps?

 

A lovely re-start to the run from Nunez and Muntagirov last night and great Bluebirds from O'Sullivan and Sambe (was that a debut?). There also seemed to be more general 'energy' on stage last night than was the case over Christmas. Some interesting variations in tempi from Kessels but they worked well, especially in Muntagirov's glorious Act 2 soliloquy - has anyone ever danced this better?

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Now time to discuss the actual shows, perhaps?

 

..... great Bluebirds from O'Sullivan and Sambe (was that a debut?).

 

They were both terrific :) I think it was only a debut for O'Sullivan.

 

.....especially in Muntagirov's glorious Act 2 soliloquy - has anyone ever danced this better?

IMO James Hay danced it better - not something I'd have expected to say.

 

Nunez & Muntagirov have very different stage presence - she has a slightly overwhelming smile throughout whereas he is much more restrained, so for me I'm not entirely sure it's the perfect partnership but they both danced extremely well, as you'd expect.

 

Nagdhi's fairy variation was perfection & O'Sullivan impressed me very much too.

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I really enjoyed last night and it is great to have Nela back onstage...and Vadim, for that matter!  I still had their marvellous Giselle in my mind, and I think anything after that would be a slight let-down.  Not that this was a let-down, but with no real depth of emotion here, there is not an awful lot they could do except dance the steps well and prettily, and that is what they did.  So I didn't leave feeling blown away, but I just greatly enjoyed it.  Nela seemed very slightly tentative at first, but very quickly warmed up and did what she does best:  dance a beautifully executed classical ballet.  Vadim was exemplary in his partnering and his dancing, but I must say I agree with Anna above that James Hay moved me more in the solo, and his steps were every bit as well placed and held as Vadim's were.  The only reason I am not seeing him tonight is because it's my wedding anniversary and we are doing something else!  So sadly I only caught his debut.  I am sure that when I see Nela and Vadim again in a few days it will be even better.

 

Agree again with Anna that Yasmine Naghdi's Woodland Glade fairy was fabulous.   I loved Kirsten McNally's Carabosse....sexy and sarcastic and joyously wicked.  One complaint about the staging....in the awakening scene, the bed is angled such that no-one on the left-hand side of the stage can see the destruction of Carabosse as the mirror above the bed cracks.  The angle, and the curtain, completely block this off from the left side.  That is very poor.  As far as that side of the audience is concerned, Carabosse disappears behind the bed and that's it, she is never seen again!  What happened to her, someone near me was wondering last night.....I think this needs to be re-thought. 

 

Back to the dancing....wow, I was totally bowled over by Marcellino Sambe and Anna Rose O'Sullivan as Bluebird and Florine.  Judging by the loud and prolonged applause, so was everyone else!  Fabulous virtuoso dancing from him (the height of those jumps!  The amount of stage covered with his leaps! ), and very good technique from her, as well as a lovely stage presence.  I think this was one of the places that Capybara mentioned above, i.e. I found the tempo a bit strange in parts of it, but hey ho, they danced it brilliantly.  Anna Rose is, for me, another particularly outstanding dancer who will go far.  I was noticing her lovely, bird-like arms last night, and hoping that one day these will be swan wings...

 

It was clearly a good idea to have a break from this ballet as the company did indeed look like they were enjoying it a lot more than a couple of months ago.  Furthermore, for many of these dancers to have been dancing Woolf Works on Tuesday night, to then be dancing that most classical of ballets so well 24 hours later is a remarkable achievement.  Kudos to them all.

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I don't think they do the mirror cracking any more - at least, I didn't see it in the short run before Christmas. Think Carabosse just gets blacked out now...

 Just proves my point....I have been on the left side the last couple of times so couldn't see that things have changed.

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Hayward's debut as Aurora this afternoon was as entirely magical as her enchanted smile. Her stunning musicality made this performance and its pulsating horizon an event to cherish through time.

 

Anna Rose O'Sullivan was a vivid Fairy of the Golden Vine ... she glimmered ... and Zucchetti was an amazingly precise Bluebird.

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