Your Best and Worst of 2016?

[Saodan]

Without a shadow of a doubt, my highlight was catching Nunez and Muntagirov’s surprise first performance of Giselle. An extraordinary evening after some cast change chaos! Topped off by getting a very late ticket to Osipova’s performance. Her act one variation and mad scene, and the second act with Nunez as Myrtha were all breath-taking. If I could go back in time, I would go to 19:25 the evening of that performance. 

 

Honourable mention to Fumi Kaneko’s Gypsy Girl in The Two Pigeons, Yasmine Naghdi in The Invitation, Meaghan Grace Hinkis as Justine in Frankenstein (the best thing about the ballet in my opinion), and Natalia Osipova in act III of Anastasia, redemptive in all meanings of the word. Seeing the dancers close up in the Clore for Giselle Reimagined was amazing and I also want to see Naghdi as Giselle, soon please. The Australian Ballet’s Swan Lake made me think for good and bad reasons. And, Fille, just because. Also, I got a pair of Mayara Magri’s shoes from Olivia Cowley’s fundraiser. 

 

Bucking the trend, the only thing I really didn’t enjoy was Akram Khan’s Giselle. I found it to be narratively bereft and self indulgent, with a lot of incredibly talented dancers plodding around in half darkness to the sound of clanking pipes, but maybe I missed something. In the spirit of fairness I did enjoy the landlord’s outfits, Giselle’s reanimation, and Stina Quaegebeur’s Myrtha. Hopefully there will be a dvd so I can figure out exactly what went wrong for me. 

 

Otherwise the worst thing about this year was the performances I missed, especially the debuts. Fingers crossed for that really well paid job…

[Bruce Wall]

I just wanted to add to my list of 2016 performance highlights Amber Scott in Ratmansky's Cinderella for The Australian Ballet.  She was, I thought, entirely enchanting in that role.  I found her to be a fine ballerina.  

[assoluta]

Bill - think you need to quote the full reference - 

 

Much as I too cherish the fact that K. O'Hare - who is doing a brilliant job and reaping the benefits of his building from the bottom up - I do wish he would stop bringing in a certain Ukrainian guest - a fine dancer in her own right but surely not a unique force in any marked rep on the world stage - when there simply is NO need and there is just so much talent in the RB's hand to play.  If this means having to say 'No' to a certain Mr. McRae so be it.  Just think McRae might well then have the privilege of dancing with Anna-Rose O'Sullivan.  O lucky him I say!  

 

It has been suggested here - as elsewhere - that the reason the referenced dancer is brought in so plenteously is on Mr. McRae's insistence/request.  I have no knowledge whether or not this is true - but I do find the 'guesting' unjustified when there is so much RB talent on hand - as is now frequently commented upon in these boards.  Surely they deserve first dibs at those prised opportunities ... and surely Mr. McRae deserves the chance to dance with more of the stellar in-house developing artists.

 

Whatever the reasons she is visiting us, I found 'the referenced dancer' to be so exquisite I feel happy each time I see her dancing. Surely there should be a way to accommodate the need to showcase home bred talents without necessity to deprive at least some of us the esthetic pleasures of seeing a dancer as refined as her.

[MAB]

Akram Khan's Giselle was the highlight of the year for me, a real master work with the two casts I saw bringing very unique and very different interpretations to their roles.  An incredible achievement.  ENB cleaned up as far as choreography was concerned with Broken Wings also impressing me greatly.  In contrast over at the RB I hated Frankenstein and Strapless, only the wonderful Elizabeth, danced so memorably by Yanovsky and Acosta, gave me a warm glow.

 

The young dancers at the Royal Ballet go from strength to strength, a real embarrassment of riches.  Performance of the year was the Stix-Brunell/Ball Two Pigeons in what was for me the revival of the year.  An Ashton vintage year with Hayward/Sambe adding to the bliss of the master's choreography danced superbly by a new generation in Fille.

 

Of visiting companies Pina Bausch was undiluted delight in London,  In Cardiff the Maryinsky gave superb performances of modern works with those awe inspiring dancers Tereshkina and Kondaurova leading the company.  Back in London the Bolshoi didn't impress me so much this time around with weak casting in a couple of instances.  Hopefully a glitch due to the management change over, disappointing though.

[Nina G.]

As I can't commute easily anylonger I am restricted to mainly attending the RB performances (and the wonderful BRB when they are at Sadler's Wells, occasionally also ENB) so I can only comment on the RB.

 

My 2016 highlights are very similar to what others have already highlighted. The RB is awash with young talented dancers and I very much enjoy watching their individual progress whenever I can.

 

However there are dancers who do stand out and rise high above others for various reasons: their perfected technic, their ability to project and transmit emotions to the audience, their ability to make me shed a tear (or two or three), or because of their classical physical beauty and line combined with a strong stage presence and acting talent.

 

The Best of 2016:

Performances and/or dancers I have enjoyed the most:

 

Marianella Nunez, Natalia Osipova and Akane Takada in "Giselle"

 

The corps de ballet in Giselle and Nutcracker: sublime and stars in their own right.

 

Vadim Muntagirov and Alexander Campbell in anything they dance (no further comment needed! )

 

Zenaida Yanowsky as Elisabeth I

 

Beatriz Stix-Brunell/Matthew Ball in "Two Pigeons", Stix-Brunell/ Ryoichi Hirano in "Raven Girl"

 

Marcelino Sambe/Francesca Hayward in "The Winter's Tale", Hayward/Hay in "Rhapsody" 

 

Yasmine Naghdi in anything she dances. Her performance in "Anastasia" as Mathilde Kschessinska - said to be the hardest pd2 in  the ballet repertoire, danced on a two day's notice replacing the injured Takada - was breathtaking and considered by many as the best in this run. Equally impressive was her psychological portrayal of The Girl in "The Invitation" (spin chilling), and her recent outstanding debut as Sugar Plum Fairy proofed to me she is one of the RB's most versatile ballerinas. I can't wait to see her Aurora with the gorgeous and very talented Matthew Ball (they are one of the RB's most stunning couples). 

 

Ryoichi Hirano in "Carmen" as the Matador, Laura Morera and Fumi Kaneko as "Gypsy Girl".

 

Other dancers I have seen deserving a mention: Reece Clark (another male RB treasure!), Olivia Cowley (in "Anastasia"), O'Sullivan, Magri, Heap, Luca Acri, Claire Calvert (as Hermione in " The Winter's Tale"), Valentino Zucchetti (partnership with Naghdi in "Sleeping Beauty", Bluebird Variation) and Calvin Richardson.

 

ENB: all the dancers in Khan's "Giselle" were impressive, they gave it their all despite an average choreography.

 

The Worst of 2016:

Wheeldon's "Strapless"

Acosta's "Carmen"

McGregor's "Multiverse"

Scarlett's "Frankenstein"

[Sim]

Nina, did you mean Hayward/Sambe in Fille?

[Nina G.]

Yes sorry, and thank you for correcting. I also forgot Miss Naghdi's refined Rose Fairy in "Nutcracker" deserves to be added to my list!

[trog]

Best - BRB Shakespeare Triple - esp Wink & Moors Pavane

Worst - BRB too I'm afraid for Wolves Are People Too - lots of the dances seemed to come from other ballets and the live drawings, although really wonderful in themselves, really added nothing to the piece.

Biggest Surprise - NBT - Jane Eyre - so little set and so much done with it.

[Fonty]

Having been away for a lot of this year, I haven't been able to see much at all.

 

But if we are talking about dance performances that created a lasting impression, then Ed Balls dancing Gangnam Style on SCD has to be one that will stay in my mind for a very long time!  

[Ian Macmillan]

I would certainly mention Cathy Marston's Jane Eyre for Northern Ballet as something to remember from 2016.

[Jan McNulty]

To The Pointe has five highlights for 2016:  http://tothepointemagazine.wixsite.com/tothepointemagazine/single-post/2017/01/03/ToThePointes-Top-5-Highlights-of-2016

 

 

I'm not quite sure how a mental aberration made me forget to included ENB's Giselle by Akram Khan in my highlights.  It was just awesome.

[Sim]

A very interesting choice, TTP!

[capybara]

A very interesting choice, TTP!

 

A nice, off-beat "young" choice and one which has made me think.

[Sim]

I love the way TTP describes Brandon Lawrence and Delia Mathews dancing together as 'a gift for each other'.  That is so true;  you really feel that when they dance together, that they are just dancing for each other.  That is so special.

[JohnS]

Kevin O'Hare's nurturing of both tremendous up and coming talent and established dancers at the Royal Ballet. The 10 June 'Promotions' press notice was a highlight and has been followed by a succession of captivating debuts. Elizabeth, Winter's Tale, Frankenstein and Anastasia have provided many memorable performances for Zenaida, Laura, Kristen, Olivia, Ed, Steven, Gary, Bennet and so many others.

 

A personal highlight is being fortunate enough to get a pair of Anna Rose's pointe shoes courtesy of Olivia's sterling efforts for the Alzheimer's Society. We like to think that Anna Rose may have used these for Clara in the 29 November Nutcracker, the magic of which was so beautifully captured in the BBC's Christmas documentary.

 

As regards the lows, I just worry that there may be the beginnings of what I sense may be some Ballet Forum perceived rivalry between Francesca and Yasmine advocates. Both are wonderful dancers who light up the stage and we're so fortunate to be able to delight in their artistry. And there are so many other amazingly talented dancers coming through the Company and the School.

[bridiem]

Kevin O'Hare's nurturing of both tremendous up and coming talent and established dancers at the Royal Ballet. The 10 June 'Promotions' press notice was a highlight and has been followed by a succession of captivating debuts. Elizabeth, Winter's Tale, Frankenstein and Anastasia have provided many memorable performances for Zenaida, Laura, Kristen, Olivia, Ed, Steven, Gary, Bennet and so many others.

 

A personal highlight is being fortunate enough to get a pair of Anna Rose's pointe shoes courtesy of Olivia's sterling efforts for the Alzheimer's Society. We like to think that Anna Rose may have used these for Clara in the 29 November Nutcracker, the magic of which was so beautifully captured in the BBC's Christmas documentary.

 

As regards the lows, I just worry that there may be the beginnings of what I sense may be some Ballet Forum perceived rivalry between Francesca and Yasmine advocates. Both are wonderful dancers who light up the stage and we're so fortunate to be able to delight in their artistry. And there are so many other amazingly talented dancers coming through the Company and the School.

 

I don't honestly see any rivalry at all, JohnS - as far as I can see (read), everyone admires both dancers tremendously and the only comments have related to the greater publicity being received at the moment by FH, i.e. hoping that YN will also receive the public acclaim that she deserves. Which I'm sure she will.

[FrankH]

I'm afraid I actually have perceived some "rivalry", if that is the right word. I may be wrong, or it may come from the fact that I am a (largely passive) observer of forums involved with sport, where such "rivalries" are blatant. (is Messi better than Ronaldo, is Jurgen Klopp a better manager than Jose Mourinho etc.etc.).

 

I have sensed some resentment that YN is not receiving as much publicity at the moment as FH. There is what I might call, exaggeratedly, an amount of "damning with faint praise" of FH. She tends to be praised for particular roles, and with particular partners, and in a couple of cases, it seems that the poster is actually more interested in the partner (usually Campbell). On the other hand, many posters praise YN "in everything she does". My impression is certainly that if there were a "poll" of preferences among the posters in this forum, YN would win by quite a margin.

 

Now there is nothing basically wrong in this. The vast majority of you are far more sophisticated and knowledgeable about ballet than I am, and I trust your judgment. So you are probably right that eventually YN will turn out to be the "better" of the two. Against the general tone of the posts however, I must set the fact that Francesca has been promoted at a slightly faster rate than Yasmine, although both have had meteoric rises compared with most of the other RB dancers. Kevin O'Hare and his staff must know something about what they are doing. It may very well be that they are "protecting" Yasmine. I mentioned in another thread that a large amount of publicity, "hype", is a mixed blessing, and many performers in the arts and in sport have not handled it well. I think Yasmine actually benefits from the situation. She has also received quite a bit of publicity, just not as much as Francesca. There is thus less of a spotlight on her - and consequently less stress. She is freed up to develop at her own pace,

 

Until recently, I hadn't seen either woman dancing in a major role. And then I saw FH as Clara in the live RB cinema transmission, and was bowled over by it. For me it was one of the finest performances in any of the performing arts I have seen (thinking of other such, I came up with Marlon Brando in On The Waterfront !). I realised that all the hype for FH, even if excessive, had a very valid basis.

 

I have not yet seen Yasmine dance a major role. I am quite prepared to be even more impressed by her - but it won't matter if I am not. As a beginner in ballet appreciation, my opinion will matter far less than those of the large number of knowledgeable posters on this forum. All I am prepared to venture is that if Yasmine is actually "better" than Francesca, she may very well turn out to be one of the all time greats (Pavlova, Fonteyn, etc.).

 

But perhaps "rivalry" and "better" are the wrong words. From what has been posted on here I get the impression that they are rather different sorts of dancers - am I right that they differ markedly in height, which would immediately affect the impression they sometimes give. As a complete hunch, with no basis in actual knowledge, I wonder if Francesca might be the one who appeals slightly more to the "general public", in which I include ballet appreciation novices such as myself, while Yasmine will be the darling of the true ballet connoisseur. Yasmine as ballet's Alastair Cook to Francesca's Kevin Pietersen.

 

After all that woffle, I'd better give my best and worst for 2016. I actually haven't seen that much this year.

 

Best: (of course) Francesca Hayward, Francesca Hayward, Francesca Hayward, and more so, in RB's The Nutcracker

 

The Australian Ballet. I think this is a wonderful company. Even if the ballet correspondent of The Daily Telegraph (if I recall correctly) thinks they are rather second division, they've impressed me from the time I saw their slot in the 2014 World Ballet Day transmission. They seem to have an extra degree of joie de vivre about them. They also have a young dancer, even younger than FH and YN, called Benedicte Bemet, who has impressed me each time I've seen her.

I enjoyed both their productions at the Coliseum, the (sort of ) Swan Lake and the Ratmansky Cinderella. As I generally don't like messing around with the classics, and SL is my favourite ballet, I don't think I would have bothered to see Graeme Murphy's version if it hadn't been the AB. I'm really glad I got to see it. And I even managed to have a few words with their director David McAllister after the Cinderella performance.

 

Vadim Muntagirov in The Two Pigeons. What a fine actor as well as dancer he is.

 

Worst. Nothing really, but I did almost fall asleep in Rhapsody, despite the gorgeous Rachmaninov music.

 

Best wishes to all of you for 2017. May Yasmine join Francesca as a Principal.

Edited January 4, 2017 by FrankH

[Saodan]

I'm afraid I actually have perceived some "rivalry"

 

 

I’m not entirely sure that it matters whether the audience perceive a rivalry. We will always pick our favourites and pit them against each other to argue the toss as to who is best. But, in the grand scheme of things, this doesn’t really matter. 

 

The important thing is whether the dancers perceive a rivalry. Messi and Ronald obviously do and often seem consumed by it. Is the same true of Hayward and Naghdi? I hope not. What some see as “preferential treatment” is likely just two dancers taking different paths in their careers. Maybe Naghdi doesn’t want the sort of attention Hayward is getting. 

 

 

One of the best things about 2016 has been seeing these two young dancers come on leaps and bounds in their careers. Lets not make it into one of the worst by constructing a melodrama of our own imagination. I know this is the internet, but still…

[FrankH]

Saodan, I agree with you absolutely. When I said I perceived a "rivalry", it wasn't between Francesca and Yasmine. I was thinking of what JohnS had written a few posts above:

 

"As regards the lows, I just worry that there may be the beginnings of what I sense may be some Ballet Forum perceived rivalry between Francesca and Yasmine advocates".

 

It was among the "advocates" I was perceiving a "rivalry", and even there I'm not sure the term is appropriate. I do get the impression however that some feel Yasmine has not been given a fair share of the limelight. And there may be some who think both FH and YN have received more than their fair share compared with their contemporaries.

 

We need not project the feelings of fans and advocates  on to the dancers themselves. One of the things which attracts me about the Australian Ballet is that, whenever I have seen a programme about them, they seem so much a real team, a company of friends and people who like each other. I haven't seen so much about the Royal Ballet, but would expect that in this respect, they are more like the Australians than, say, the Bolshoi, where some of the fairly recent antics puts one in mind of that ghastly film Black Swan.

[Geoff]

some feel Yasmine has not been given a fair share of the limelight. And there may be some who think both FH and YN have received more than their fair share compared with their contemporaries.

I have tried to stay out of this discussion but it strikes me that a comment from my professional experience might possibly add something. Without knowing anything about the actual circumstances behind the making of the Nutcracker documentary (which seems to be where this discussion originated) I can say with some confidence that every single member of the company - and at RBS - will have been given a formal, legal opportunity to "opt out". Not everyone wants to be featured in a documentary, for any number of reasons, and the company management will have had to process paperwork for each and every person who appears and who doesn't appear.

 

This says nothing about subsequent decisions taken in the filming and then the cutting room with regard to who receives how much screen time, but one should not assume that everyone involved has been pushing to appear for as much as possible.

 

Moving to a historical comparison, who remembers the South Bank Show which featured both Darcey Bussell and Viviana Durante at the RBS (this film was itself not a straightforward production, in fact there were two directors credited, usually a sign of trouble of one kind or another)? There are those that say this film set those two dancers careers up in opposition - "rivalry"? - and that this narrative barely changed from then on.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Geoff

[Bruce Wall]

Forgive me for responding to a tangent that has taken this interesting strand away from its dedicated focus but is not the chat here about a suggested 'rivalry' simply feeding a perhaps imaginary fire and thereby giving it a certain credence and, thus, - in that sense only - potentially making it real in certain people's minds by the power of suggestion?  

 

What was it my mother used to say?  'Least said soonest mended'.  

 

I so look forward to more discussion on this strand as pertains to its titled subject.  

Edited January 5, 2017 by Bruce Wall

[jmhopton]

To return to the titled subject!

 

My favourites for 2016 are Two Pigeons; especially seeing Vadim at the cinema. His second act solo was amazing he radiated such joy and happiness. If it is revived again (as I hope it will be soon) I would love to see Franceca, Yasmine and all the other up-and-coming young dancers to be given a chance to dance the young girl.

 

la Fille as it's possibly my favourite ballet.  Francesca and Sambe's debut was an amazing highlight as was seeing Vadim as Colas. It was also wonderful to see Roberta Marquez in one of her final Lise's. I think she is one of the all-time great Lises and a great loss to the company.

 

Vadim in Giselle. I thought his performance awesome and would love to see him dance it with Osipova.

 

Bolshoi Ballet Flames of Paris and Don Q (though I did miss Osipova and Vasiliev). However Ovcharenko and Tikhomorova are real finds and I look forward to seeing them again. Her performance in Taming of the Shrew was a definite highlight though I only saw it at the cinema.

 

I did quite enjoy Frankenstein. I thought it hugely impressive for a first full length ballet. I just think the character of the creature needs more development and there should definitely be more made of the actual moment of creation which should be the most pivotal but which is quickly glossed over. However, I thought there were amazing pas de deux for Frankenstein and Elizabeth and the part of the maid and the little boy were well imagined.

 

Gary Avis in anything he does. he has such charm and elegance and it was great to see him given other roles in The Invitation and Anastasia..

 

BRB Taming of the Shrew; fabulous performances by Iain Mackay and Elisha Willlis 

 

Haven't really seen anything I disliked as being so far from most of the action I have to be quite selective in what I attend.

[Mary]

Best: Vadim Muntagirov

Worst: Having to miss some of his performances.

[Fonty]

Moving to a historical comparison, who remembers the South Bank Show which featured both Darcey Bussell and Viviana Durante at the RBS (this film was itself not a straightforward production, in fact there were two directors credited, usually a sign of trouble of one kind or another)? There are those that say this film set those two dancers careers up in opposition - "rivalry"? - and that this narrative barely changed from then on.

 

I remember it, and if I recall correctly, the emphasis of the programme was on two young dancers of roughly the same age, who had both come through the RB school from White Lodge, and were now establishing themselves in the company.  I certainly didn't get any impression of the programme makers trying to establish a rivalry of any sort.  

[Timmie]

Best of 2016 for me by far was the Nunez/Muntagirov Giselle. I saw the surprise performance of this when they replaced Lamb/Golding. Nunez has always been my favourite dancer and this is probably the best performance I have seen from her.

 

My other big highlight of the year was to finally see Zakharova.

 

Low point: Multiverse. The first part sent me into some sort of trance-like depression which meant I couldn’t enjoy the rest, which didn’t look too bad.

[Sunrise]

 

Kevin O'Hare and his staff must know something about what they are doing. It may very well be that they are "protecting" Yasmine. I mentioned in another thread that a large amount of publicity, "hype", is a mixed blessing, and many performers in the arts and in sport have not handled it well. I think Yasmine actually benefits from the situation. She has also received quite a bit of publicity, just not as much as Francesca. There is thus less of a spotlight on her - and consequently less stress. She is freed up to develop at her own

.

I have to agree with this. No one wants another scenario like Polunin's who was promoted because he was a brilliant, artistic dancer but not emotionally ready to take it all on and blew up very publically. I'm not saying that YN is anything like this - there have been so many wonderful dancers who were accelerated to principal and lived up to their potential, such as Bussell, Guillem or Cojocaru. But maybe the RB management is right to take a more thoughtful and cautious approach.

 

Back to the topic, best moment for me was Akram Khan's Giselle and ENB - bold and powerful choreography, wonderfully danced. Worst was Acosta's Carmen - such a disappointing way to bow out. I would add to this list some of the other pieces mentioned before but I had such low expectations anyway I couldn't be more disappointed.

[Nina G.]

"Least said soonest mended" as Bruce Wall said...(but can I just add one last thought please )

 

I once saw a short film in which Naghdi and Hayward were being coached by Darcy Bussell in Swan Lake (can't remember where or when I saw this) so I believe they must have trained side by side at the RBS, and were in the same class (?). I can't see any reason why there would be any "rivalry" between them: they are very different dancers, each one outstanding in their own repertoire and each one with their particular talents: Miss Hayward makes for a great Lise, Miss Naghdi makes for a great SPF.  

 

If I remember correctly I haven't seen Hayward in any major classical tutu role besides Bluebird and only recently as SPF (she was made a Principal before having danced in any full-length Classical role). 

 

In an interview Hayward stated: “If it’s Frankie in a tutu, rather than Frankie being another person, then I get a bit more nervous because you haven’t got anything else to hide behind.” 

http://www.standard.co.uk/goingout/theatre/francesca-hayward-a-sugar-plum-life-a3213211.html

 

Naghdi on the other hand said: 

"I really do love dancing complex, psychological roles but I also look forward to being challenged in ultra technical, classical roles".

http://www.freedoflondon.com/Web/Blog/Post.aspx?id=31

 

It is my impression that Naghdi is being groomed to dance the great Classical roles in the RB repertoire: her classical physique and superb fascilities are so well suited to dancing all the great Classics (I have seen her dancing Mathilde Kschessinska, Rose Fairy, Bluebird, Sugar Plum Fairy, as well as her Juliet, amongst others). Miss Hayward on the other hand is being groomed to dance roles in the Ashton repertoire as well as in MacMillan works and she was superb in those roles; but having seen Naghdi also in Ashton's Symphonic Variations, Monotones I, The Invitation, and in Cranko's "Onegin"... it illustrates her great versatility.

 

I attended the performance of both dancers dancing SPF and Bluebird and I feel Naghdi is very much in her element and at ease dancing those roles whilst Hayward is more in her element dancing roles such as Clara, Lise, Manon, Rhapsody.

 

Just as much as I loved watching Cojocaru as well as Rojo or Nunez... (they all gave me great pleasure with their beautiful dancing) so do Naghdi and Hayward, each in their own unique way. 

 

I wish them both a long and successful dancing career, alongside the many other talented and beautiful RB dancers I enjoy watching too!    

 

Now back to "Best and Worse of 2016?"  (sorry Mr Bruce Wall)

[Geoff]

I certainly didn't get any impression of the programme makers trying to establish a rivalry of any sort.

Fonty, that is not actually what I wrote (which I tried to word quite carefully but that seems to have failed) If you reread my comment you will see the word "careers" at the centre of the suggestion, in other words a view formed after the two of them had careers (therefore retrospectively, with hindsight). It was not an observation about what the numerous people involved in the film may have thought they were doing at the time, rather a comment about what some have felt were the longer term consequences.

 

I shouldn't say any more, partly as the overall subject seems rather to have exhausted itself, partly as I am relying on private information which I don't want to go into detail about, and partly as what I write seems all too easily misunderstood.

[penelopesimpson]

Without a shadow of a doubt, my highlight was catching Nunez and Muntagirov’s surprise first performance of Giselle. An extraordinary evening after some cast change chaos! Topped off by getting a very late ticket to Osipova’s performance. Her act one variation and mad scene, and the second act with Nunez as Myrtha were all breath-taking. If I could go back in time, I would go to 19:25 the evening of that performance. 

 

Honourable mention to Fumi Kaneko’s Gypsy Girl in The Two Pigeons, Yasmine Naghdi in The Invitation, Meaghan Grace Hinkis as Justine in Frankenstein (the best thing about the ballet in my opinion), and Natalia Osipova in act III of Anastasia, redemptive in all meanings of the word. Seeing the dancers close up in the Clore for Giselle Reimagined was amazing and I also want to see Naghdi as Giselle, soon please. The Australian Ballet’s Swan Lake made me think for good and bad reasons. And, Fille, just because. Also, I got a pair of Mayara Magri’s shoes from Olivia Cowley’s fundraiser. 

 

Bucking the trend, the only thing I really didn’t enjoy was Akram Khan’s Giselle. I found it to be narratively bereft and self indulgent, with a lot of incredibly talented dancers plodding around in half darkness to the sound of clanking pipes, but maybe I missed something. In the spirit of fairness I did enjoy the landlord’s outfits, Giselle’s reanimation, and Stina Quaegebeur’s Myrtha. Hopefully there will be a dvd so I can figure out exactly what went wrong for me. 

 

Otherwise the worst thing about this year was the performances I missed, especially the debuts. Fingers crossed for that really well paid job…

So with you on the Akram Khan production.  I almost wept to see the wonderful Alina investing so much energy in passion in something so beneath her talents

[penelopesimpson]

I have tried to stay out of this discussion but it strikes me that a comment from my professional experience might possibly add something. Without knowing anything about the actual circumstances behind the making of the Nutcracker documentary (which seems to be where this discussion originated) I can say with some confidence that every single member of the company - and at RBS - will have been given a formal, legal opportunity to "opt out". Not everyone wants to be featured in a documentary, for any number of reasons, and the company management will have had to process paperwork for each and every person who appears and who doesn't appear.

 

This says nothing about subsequent decisions taken in the filming and then the cutting room with regard to who receives how much screen time, but one should not assume that everyone involved has been pushing to appear for as much as possible.

 

Moving to a historical comparison, who remembers the South Bank Show which featured both Darcey Bussell and Viviana Durante at the RBS (this film was itself not a straightforward production, in fact there were two directors credited, usually a sign of trouble of one kind or another)? There are those that say this film set those two dancers careers up in opposition - "rivalry"? - and that this narrative barely changed from then on.

I adore both Francesca and Yasmin and for my part will probably never have a favourite - just eternally grateful that RB has them.  However, I do remember the Durante/Bussell era and as a major fan of Durante, I always rather felt that Bussell somewhat elbowed her out.

 

This opinion is based on nothing at all so is more than likely wrong, but it did seem that Durante who was a wonderful dancer and, for me, much more versatile than Bussell, lost out to the 'well-connected' media friendly Bussell.

[Shya100]

I adore both Francesca and Yasmin and for my part will probably never have a favourite - just eternally grateful that RB has them.  However, I do remember the Durante/Bussell era and as a major fan of Durante, I always rather felt that Bussell somewhat elbowed her out.

 

This opinion is based on nothing at all so is more than likely wrong, but it did seem that Durante who was a wonderful dancer and, for me, much more versatile than Bussell, lost out to the 'well-connected' media friendly Bussell.

You see I don't think she was pushed anywhere with regard to the ballet. Darcy was the media face though. She had the personality for it. In career terms though...no. I am of your opinion about the other two. Could be one or the other becomes a more media friendly face. Nothing to do with career anyway. My favourite at the moment is Nunez though. Just her lovely face is enough I am afraid. Lights up a room.

[Tatiana]

I think I'd have to give a shout-out to the Australian ballet's 'Cinderella' for my best of 2016. Completely bizarre and utterly lovely, with possibly my favourite costumes in any ballet. And AK's Giselle, of course.

Worst is RB's Anastasia. I was just so bored.

[Petunia]

Best:

Khan: Until the Lions
Khan: Giselle

Cherkaoui / Eastman: Fraktus V

Pina Bausch Company: Palermo, Palermo

Hayward / Hay in Rhapsody

Nunez / Muntagirov in Giselle at the cinema

Will Tucket: Elizabeth

World Ballet Day 2016

 

Worst

Nacho Duato’s Nutcracker

Several “cutting-edge” contemporary choreographies I don’t want to remember.

 

Luckily, there was a lot more to like than not. Just not at home, but I like to travel…