The Royal Ballet: Firebird Triple Bill June 2019

[Geoff]

As has been mentioned already, the recording from the 1970s is available complete on YouTube:

 

 

Very lovely it is too and very nostalgic for me (I saw this ballet during its first run, to think we almost took such genius for granted in those privileged days).Watching this is no doubt instructive for those who hold to the ever-improving-standards theory: the marvellous cast take things at such a lick compared to today that at times one almost feels the film has been speeded up. Yet SO expressive. Magnificent, thank you Sir Fred. 

[LinMM]

Original cast ......I did attend the very first performance of this ballet but haven't watched this particular film yet.....was Natalia : Lynn Seymour Beliave: Anthony Dowell Vera : Denise Nunn Kolya : Wayne Sleep The maid: Marguerite Porter 

Denise Nunn had just previously been in the RBS performance of Concerto dancing the second movement ...still trying to remember who her partner was ...maybe Michael Batchelor ..but not sure. Anyway she was sort of picked out of the corps de ballet to play Vera...all the others were well known dancers at the time. 

Unfortunately Denise Nunn did not stay that long with the Company and returned to Australia ....she was a lovely dancer in similar style to Francesca Hayward I would say. 

Lynn Seymour had wonderful abandon in the upper body which is one of the reasons why I think she was so good in this role ....and just enough touch of melodrama but not overdone. Wayne Sleep had a natural cheekiness and had a way of stepping naughtily on that chair when flying the kite that was just perfect and difficult to recapture I think. 

Anyway tomorrow I hope to indulge in this video before seeing again next week .....probably ages before its performed again at ROH mores the pity. 

 

[maryrosesatonapin]

We went to see the triple bill this afternoon and loved every minute.  Never have three hours flown by so fast.  Others have given super descriptions (thank you all!) so I’ll just add a few comments.

 

Firebird:  There is so much to love about this ballet, and Magri danced very well.  Just imagine how stunning it must have seemed when it first appeared in 1910!  The music, as well as the dancing, was magical and compelling.

 

Month in the Country:  I didn’t remember how funny this is, in spite of the underlying sadness.  There were a couple of laugh out loud moments (such as when Vera and Natalia were having a jealous spat over Beliaev).  Hallberg looked handsome enough to be a convincing lady-magnet, and came across as a bit of a bounder until the moving closing scene.  Osipova was perfect for the role IMO.  Visually the ballet was a delight, except for the butler’s coat which for some reason was an over-strident shade of blue.

Luca Acri managed to convey a childlike charm but this was belied by his large size – which spoiled my suspension of disbelief somewhat.

The pianist, Kate Shipway, deserves a mention as this beautiful music is very demanding. 

 

Symphony in C -  Fumi Kaneko’s mishap right at the beginning caused me to feel anxious for the rest of that movement (hoping she hadn’t hurt herself).    After that I relaxed and was carried away on a wave of exquisite music and movement.  This is a great showcase for the company and made me feel so proud of them.  In the third movement Alexander Campbell was admirable and I could see no affectation so maybe he reads this forum and has amended his habits   I did wish though that the female dancers weren’t of such varied heights because it distracted from the desired uniformity of some groupings.

It’s worth noting that the student Bizet was only seventeen when he composed this symphony.  Clever, eh?

 

Afterwards we got on a riverboat to see an exhibition of the work of Firebird’s designer, Natalia Goncharova, at Tate Modern – well worth a visit!
https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/natalia-goncharova

 

And the film ‘Force of Nature Natalia’ has just come out:

https://www.curzoncinemas.com/film-info/force-of-nature-natalia

Edited June 7, 2019 by maryrosesatonapin
Symphony in C kept showing up as symphony in smiley face! Grrrr.

[loveclassics]

On 05/06/2019 at 08:46, Mary said:

I think after Johnny Cope's very sad acccident , his first role back was in the Firebird, - (correct me if I'm wrong) so I had a sense of deja vu. Ed Watson was perfect in this role which, though it is not a dancing role as such, does require enormous expressive power if the balllet is to have its effect, especially at the end when his one simple gesture -raising the sceptred arm - speaks volumes- and indeed it did- of right triumphant and order restored ( if only). It was marvellous to see him back, and may we see more of him in future.

Yasmine Naghdi was a beautiful and fiery firebird indeed. Such classical speed and precision- just what is needed.

 

 

Jonny Cope should have danced in The Firebird in February 2006 but was injured in a traffic accident just after the New Year so he made his official final appearance on the Covent Garden stage on crutches to a warmly appreciative audience. The entire company joined him onstage after the performance, even those who weren't dancing that evening - I remember Carlos Acosta wrapped up in a thick overcoat so it must have been a cold night!

 

But he did dance with Leanne Benjamin in the Firebird at a gala at Hanover (or was it Frankfurt, I can't remember?) a few years later.  The RB were on tour in Cuba that summer and he flew there afterwards, presumably to resume his role as a repetiteur, only to find that Rupert Pennefather had injured his back and Zenaida Yanowsky needed a partner for Month in the Country, so I guess that was his real last performance.  It's all in the Ballet Boyz' highly entertaining documentary.

 

Linda

[Geoff]

6 hours ago, maryrosesatonapin said:

And the film ‘Force of Nature Natalia’ has just come out:

https://www.curzoncinemas.com/film-info/force-of-nature-natalia

 

And there is a separate thread on it too:

 

https://www.balletcoforum.com/topic/20136-new-osipova-documentary-live-qa/

 

[bridiem]

Thanks for posting the 1978 recording, Geoff (of a performance I may well have attended, given how often I went to ballet in 1978! I'd only discovered it the previous year and it was all-consuming). I haven't watched all of it, because I'm finding the contrast between then and now quite difficult, given how much I admire today's dancers. The dancers then were so fast, so lyrical, so light, so apparently effortless and above all so musical. They're dancing, not doing ballet.

[AnneL]

8 hours ago, maryrosesatonapin said:

We went to see the triple bill this afternoon and loved every minute.  Never have three hours flown by so fast.  Others have given super descriptions (thank you all!) so I’ll just add a few comments.

 

Firebird:  There is so much to love about this ballet, and Magri danced very well.  Just imagine how stunning it must have seemed when it first appeared in 1910!  The music, as well as the dancing, was magical and compelling.

 

Month in the Country:  I didn’t remember how funny this is, in spite of the underlying sadness.  There were a couple of laugh out loud moments (such as when Vera and Natalia were having a jealous spat over Beliaev).  Hallberg looked handsome enough to be a convincing lady-magnet, and came across as a bit of a bounder until the moving closing scene.  Osipova was perfect for the role IMO.  Visually the ballet was a delight, except for the butler’s coat which for some reason was an over-strident shade of blue.

Luca Acri managed to convey a childlike charm but this was belied by his large size – which spoiled my suspension of disbelief somewhat.

The pianist, Kate Shipway, deserves a mention as this beautiful music is very demanding. 

 

Symphony in C -  Fumi Kaneko’s mishap right at the beginning caused me to feel anxious for the rest of that movement (hoping she hadn’t hurt herself).    After that I relaxed and was carried away on a wave of exquisite music and movement.  This is a great showcase for the company and made me feel so proud of them.  In the third movement Alexander Campbell was admirable and I could see no affectation so maybe he reads this forum and has amended his habits   I did wish though that the female dancers weren’t of such varied heights because it distracted from the desired uniformity of some groupings.

It’s worth noting that the student Bizet was only seventeen when he composed this symphony.  Clever, eh?

 

Afterwards we got on a riverboat to see an exhibition of the work of Firebird’s designer, Natalia Goncharova, at Tate Modern – well worth a visit!
https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/natalia-goncharova

 

And the film ‘Force of Nature Natalia’ has just come out:

https://www.curzoncinemas.com/film-info/force-of-nature-natalia

Regarding Symphony in C, I had exactly the same anxiety after Kaneko’s stumble near the start. And I have to confess that I didn’t enjoy the ballet as much as when I saw it last autumn. Perhaps it wasn’t quite such a good performance, or (and this is very possible) it was a better finale after two so-so modern works, than following the Firebird and Month. Nunez, Campbell and Hayward all shone, however, and Hirano did a great job in both the works he appeared in. However, I think that if I was in charge of programming, I would have gone for a shorter 3rd work, although I realise this is one that will show off a good proportion of the company’s dancers. 

Firebird is truly one of my all-time favourites - I love the score - and Magri and the whole cast did it justice. I especially liked the lighting. I am not so familiar with Month - only the second time I have seen it - but the story was communicated well by all the dancers. Hinkis really impressed me - it was good to see her in such a featured role. 

[MargaretN7]

After attending this triple yesterday afternoon I went south of the river to the Bankside Gallery (next door to Tate Modern, home of the Water Colour Society, and currently hosting an exhibition by the Society of Graphic Artists). I was met by a different Natalia Osipova, this pastel on paper portrait by Svetlana Cameron. (Checked ok with the gallery to photo and post this.)

 

[Sim]

Wow that’s beautiful.   A true likeness.  Thanks Margaret!  

[MargaretN7]

39 minutes ago, MargaretN7 said:

After attending this triple yesterday afternoon I went south of the river to the Bankside Gallery (next door to Tate Modern, home of the Water Colour Society, and currently hosting an exhibition by the Society of Graphic Artists). I was met by a different Natalia Osipova, this pastel on paper portrait by Svetlana Cameron. (Checked ok with the gallery to photo and post this.)

 

 

And correction. It's  Society of Graphic Fine Art

[penelopesimpson]

That is incredible.  She always has a loneliness about her.  Thanks for posting.

[bangorballetboy]

52 minutes ago, MargaretN7 said:

After attending this triple yesterday afternoon I went south of the river to the Bankside Gallery (next door to Tate Modern, home of the Water Colour Society, and currently hosting an exhibition by the Society of Graphic Artists). I was met by a different Natalia Osipova, this pastel on paper portrait by Svetlana Cameron. (Checked ok with the gallery to photo and post this.)

 

 

Just to follow up on our conversation yesterday evening, this is one of a pair of portraits of Osipova; the other was auctioned for charity a couple of years ago but a picture can be found on the artist's website.

[Jamesrhblack]

13 hours ago, AnneL said:

Arestis and Hamilton were replaced as princesses- I was lucky enough to score a cast change flyer this afternoon! 

Thanks for this. I’d even bought a programme but there was no cast change flyer with the cast list ...

[maryrosesatonapin]

6 hours ago, Jamesrhblack said:

Thanks for this. I’d even bought a programme but there was no cast change flyer with the cast list ...

Me too - annoying, isn't it!

[Mandy Kent]

I’d just like to congratulate Nicol Edmonds in a principal role partnering Sarah Lamb in Symphony in C . It’s a tricky role as all eyes are on the Ballerina but there is split second timing involved, so well done Nicol ! 

[Don Q Fan]

Loved the triple bill yesterday (Friday matinee)  I thought Magri was wonderful as the Firebird!  So many great dancers at the moment though.  Nothing to not like yesterday.  Got some lovely shots of the curtain calls. 

Firebird Ensemble

Firebird Magri/Hirano

Month In The Country ensemble

Month In The Country Osipova/Hallberg

Month In The Country Hinkis/Acri

Symphony in C ensemble

Symphony in C Choe/Campbell

Symphony in C Hayward/Hay

[LinMM]

You've done it again Don Q ...fab piccies!

[alison]

So, the moustache disappeared for the second performance?

[Bruce Wall]

I wonder .... Has anyone EVER looked human ... let alone good ... in that Kola wig????   I'm beginning to feel really sorry for these poor chaps.  First they have to dance the role of someone who is supposed to be seven (not an easy task) ... and then they are lumbered with that bale of straw on their heads.  A challenge indeed - and that's before they dance a step .... and it is, of course, Ashton's magnificent steps that provide everyone joy ... and certainly separate the men from the boys    There was no question but that Hay (no pun intended) dazzled!!

 

Edited June 9, 2019 by Bruce Wall

[ninamargaret]

Can't really see why a wig is necessary. Given that dancers in this role are generally young and have perfectly good hair it would seem better to discard the wig. There's no way any dancer can look like a 7 year old boy even with the addition of just about the ugliest wig ever seen, so why bother? 

[AnneL]

On 08/06/2019 at 10:52, Jamesrhblack said:

Thanks for this. I’d even bought a programme but there was no cast change flyer with the cast list ...

I also bought a programme but the flyer wasn’t with it! I obtained it only because in the first interval I went to the stall where the programmes were sold and asked for one. The seller had none, but a lady drinking wine at a nearby table heard us and said I could have hers. I have no idea what magic she had worked to get it, but I said thank you and took it! 

[bridiem]

1 hour ago, AnneL said:

I also bought a programme but the flyer wasn’t with it! I obtained it only because in the first interval I went to the stall where the programmes were sold and asked for one. The seller had none, but a lady drinking wine at a nearby table heard us and said I could have hers. I have no idea what magic she had worked to get it, but I said thank you and took it! 

 

I was trying to write the changes, which were displayed at the programme selling point on the ground floor, on my cast sheet, and was getting in everyone's way. So I started fumbling to get my phone out and take a photo, but it then occurred to me to ask the seller if she had any slips, and she produced one with a flourish. Why on earth could she not have given me one, when she saw I was both a) seriously interested and b) getting in the way of other patrons??

[Sim]

In the next run of Month, which I hope will be in the not-too-distant future, I would love to see David Yudes as Kolya (hopefully sans wig!).

[JohnS]

56 minutes ago, bridiem said:

 

I was trying to write the changes, which were displayed at the programme selling point on the ground floor, on my cast sheet, and was getting in everyone's way. So I started fumbling to get my phone out and take a photo, but it then occurred to me to ask the seller if she had any slips, and she produced one with a flourish. Why on earth could she not have given me one, when she saw I was both a) seriously interested and b) getting in the way of other patrons??

 

I was looking at the changes beforehand when it was pretty quiet and was offered a cast change slip without my asking which I took with thanks - perhaps I looked as if I was struggling? 

[JohnS]

25 minutes ago, Sim said:

In the next run of Month, which I hope will be in the not-too-distant future, I would love to see David Yudes as Kolya (hopefully sans wig!).

 

And I’d love to see Laura Morera as Natalia.

[bridiem]

11 minutes ago, JohnS said:

 

I was looking at the changes beforehand when it was pretty quiet and was offered a cast change slip without my asking which I took with thanks - perhaps I looked as if I was struggling? 

 

Well I must have looked as if I was struggling/getting in the way. I think you must just have had a more sensible programme seller.

[zxDaveM]

47 minutes ago, JohnS said:

 

And I’d love to see Laura Morera as Natalia.

 

she would be perfect!

[capybara]

56 minutes ago, JohnS said:

 

And I’d love to see Laura Morera as Natalia.

 

And the fact that she never been cast is inexplicable.

[alison]

4 hours ago, ninamargaret said:

Can't really see why a wig is necessary. Given that dancers in this role are generally young and have perfectly good hair it would seem better to discard the wig. There's no way any dancer can look like a 7 year old boy even with the addition of just about the ugliest wig ever seen, so why bother? 

 

The wigs are surely less bad than they used to be - didn't they use to be the same artificially golden colour as Matvei's?  These at least looked slightly more believable, especially on the darker-skinned dancers.

[Jam Dancer]

23 hours ago, Don Q Fan said:

Wonderful photos! Much better than my attempts with my phone 😂

I really enjoyed the matinée on Friday and it was a day of firsts for me which made it special.

It was my first time sitting in the Donald Gordon tier after having sat in every other section of the ROH over the years. It was my first time seeing the company live this year - I was afraid that jet lag and the 13 hours of travel the day before would mean I’d fall asleep during the performance. It was also My first time ever saying hello to a dancer I admire - Leanne Benjamin was sitting in the same row and I couldn’t help myself when passing by after an interval. Lastly, it was my first time seeing David Hallberg dance although I’ve always wanted to.

I enjoyed Hallberg and Natalia Osipova in A Month in the Country. I did think however,  that he sure made the role look like hard work. It’s been a while since I last saw the piece performed but I do remember dancers like Rupert Pennefather seeming less harried - minor quibble though.

I could feel that Mayara Magri’s Firebird wanted to be free and was doing all she could to free herself from the pesky Ivan. The elevation on her jumps was impressive.

Bravo to Fumi Kaneko for not getting rattled after the slip of her shoe at the beginning of Symphony in C. Bravo to Joseph Sissens for just being a joy to watch. I did think that the 2nd movement was a bit slower than it needed to be but it could’ve been jet lag attacking my senses. It was a lovely performance and even more so as some dancers seemed to have got the better of their reported struggles.

 

I am quite excited about seeing the company in Tokyo later this month!

[sybarite2015@]

I saw this last Wednesday with Osipova in A Month in the Country. I really enjoyed it although it was different to the kind of ballets I’ve seen before — my first Ashton. Hallberg and Natalia were great! I also enjoyed some of the Firebird which preceded it. But I left after the second interval when the curtain calls for David and Natalia died down because I had a train to catch. I made a night of it though as I dined in the splendid Paul Hamlyn Balconies Restaurant beforehand. A memorable night. Osipova and Hallberg make a great couple!

 

[MRR]

Also attended last Wednesday:

 

Mendizabal as Firebird made a strong impression in the opening solo with big, twitching eyes and an exaggerated epaulement.  Her arms were fluttering and birdlike, but her positions went unfinished in the pas and she lacked the authority of Naghdi on opening night, particularly in the scene with Koschei.  Nonetheless Firebird is one of her better roles and one to which she is suited.  Much to my surprise Kish made a stronger impression than Watson as Prince Ivan.  Perhaps his added stature helped visualize the story more, but I found him utterly convincing in his fascination with the Firebird, love for the Tsarevna, and fear of Koschei.  Alas, in his most climactic part of the ballet he succumbed to the egg, which decided to split in half well before he was supposed to drop it.  Perhaps his days as a prince in the classics are gone but I second the proposal for him as a permanent Character Artist: he has a natural, unforced stage presence and remains a fine partner.  Claire Calvert normally doesn't do much for me beyond her gloriously arched feet, but she was radiant and romantic as the Tsarevna, and technically strong later in "Symphony in C."  A great night for her.  Chris Saunders's Koschei was considerably muted compared to Gary Avis the night before.

 

As for Osipova/Hallberg in "Month," I am torn.  Technically, Osipova didn't impress to the extent of Nunez in the first solo, with the epaulement and precise footwork sort of washed over. There was also some suspension of belief that Osipova's Natalia was much older and wiser than Hallberg's Beliaev: artistically the two seemed on the same plane.  However, this was the most introspective and restrained Osipova I've seen, with the sadness and melancholy of Natalia completely captured especially in her closing walk downstage.  Nunez was more a Grande Dame of the household; Osipova a lost soul.  I found both approaches fascinating, with Osipova's Natalia becoming more vivid in the days after than immediately in the theater.  Hallberg has unmistakable deportment -- he runs onstage as if he were above water -- and the sculptural purity of his work was in a far away league from Ball the night before.  Where he suffered in comparison were the security of pirouettes, his partnering (in particular with Vera and Katia, with whom he seemed to forget a couple steps), and his character's sense of naivety.  Throughout the evening I didn't see him so much as Beliaev but as David Hallberg.  He did achieve a kind of cosmic connection with Osipova in the final pas, but the Nunez/Ball partnership rang truer to the story for me, as did their interactions among the ensemble.  Meagan Grace Hinkis as Vera and Luca Acri as Kolia were good if not to the level of their first cast counterparts.

 

In certain ways "Symphony in C" looked more sure-footed the second night.  With her diamond cut positions and lines, Fumi Kaneko is ideally cast for first movement and danced even freer Wednesday, reveling in the nuances of Bizet and Balanchine.  I'm very envious of those who will see her Aurora.  Nunez had a rather extravagant, dramatic presentation to second movement with Hirano as her stalwart partner.  Her abandonment, complete security of technique, and ability to make every step fresh and alive were impressive as was her final balance in arabesque which luxuriated forever.  As I mentioned upthread, Campbell seemed more subtle in third movement, and the last partnered arabesque with Choe (faulty on opening night) was perfect Wednesday.  Naghdi was rock-solid in fourth movement with no problems navigating the numerous pirouettes which were a bit of a white-knuckle ride with Hayward.  Other mentions: first movement had some luxury casting with Cesar Corrales impressive for his long arabesque and textbook entrechat six.  I would love to see him as first movement principal.  Claire Calvert and Beatriz Stix-Brunell were dynamic as the two ladies and Joseph Sissens held his own against the high technical standard of Muntagirov and Corrales.  Muntagirov was gallant and impeccable as always.....until fourth movement where he missed an entrance.  He is human, after all.  

 

Edited June 10, 2019 by MRR

[saki]

On 08/06/2019 at 05:39, LinMM said:

No it was Denise Nunn .....original cast I mean ...sorry video may not be original cast of course. The other night was trying to remember with another Balletco member who the original Vera was! 

 

In the video, it's Denise Nunn too, not Julie Rose.

 

The video below shows the cast in Geoff's video.

https://youtu.be/DqWSu5ij1Bw?t=19

Sorry, I can't seem to embed the video.

Edited June 10, 2019 by saki