Royal Ballet Onegin 2020

[Candleque]

At the risk of gushing (and it is only act one) Yasmine Naghdi seems born to play Tatiana. What a debut so far ✨

[nycitybird]

Wow! I think that was my favourite ballet performance I've ever attended. I saw the last run and it didn't blow me away, possibly because it was only the second ballet I'd ever seen or due to the dancer playing Onegin not being much of an actor. No such problem tonight! Naghdi and Bonelli had great chemistry and their storytelling and characterisation were crystal clear, especially in the last pas de deux where she played Tatiana's conflicting emotions so convincingly. 

 

There's nothing extraneous in the choreography and the music and costumes are gorgeous. Are these the most beautiful costumes in ballet?! I think so. 

 

I nearly didn't come as I have a cold and feared the dreaded tickly cough (funnily that happened in the last run during Lensky's very quiet solo). I nearly got away with it until the last act. Had a few panic-inducing coughs but thankfully got it under control for the last scene. So glad I came!

[Sim]

What an amazing debut from Miss Naghdi.  Such a deeply intelligent portrayal, and that final pdd, her inner turmoil, struggle and ultimate strength...just wow.  And Federico Bonelli blew me away.  He was simply outstanding tonight and his utter despair with life, then his brief glimmer of hope, then his rejection...he made me feel all of it right along with him. He and Naghdi are a wonderful, empathetic partnership, and you could see how much it meant to them at the curtain calls.  It sure meant a lot to me too, just being able to watch them.  

[nycitybird]

1 minute ago, Sim said:

And Federico Bonelli blew me away.  He was simply outstanding tonight and his utter despair with life, then his brief glimmer of hope, then his rejection...he made me feel all of it right along with him. 

 

Totally agree. And lots of nuance in the first two acts rather than just 'haughty' or 'cad.' He's one of my favourite dance actors and I never want him to retire!

[ninamargaret]

Bonelli must not be allowed to retire! He is, I think, the best actor around, and a superb partner. He and Naghdi were so beautiful together - I've seen the ballet many times but this performance was the most moving i have seen since Haydee/ Cragun. Naghdi's portrayal of Tatiana is totally right, hard to believe it was her debut. And her emotion at the curtain call was perfectly understandable.. I also enjoyed O'Sullivan and Sissens. The latter seems to thoroughly enjoy being on stage and has the makings of a fine Lensky. On the way out i spoke to a man whose very first ballet performance it was. Delighted to say he was smitten! I warned him that it was addictive!

[zxDaveM]

27 minutes ago, Sim said:

What an amazing debut from Miss Naghdi.  Such a deeply intelligent portrayal, and that final pdd, her inner turmoil, struggle and ultimate strength...just wow.  And Federico Bonelli blew me away.  He was simply outstanding tonight and his utter despair with life, then his brief glimmer of hope, then his rejection...he made me feel all of it right along with him. He and Naghdi are a wonderful, empathetic partnership, and you could see how much it meant to them at the curtain calls.  It sure meant a lot to me too, just being able to watch them.  

 

Its rather spendid Yasmine gets to dance witha more experienced partner than herself. They were electric tonight - beautiful beautiful dancing, with an emotional tug, without being overwrought and overly angsty.

The 'red dress pdd' with Bennet Gartside (as Gremin) was astonishly refined, so elegant, so 'just so', it made it believable how Tatania was ultimately so torn in that devastating final pdd. Just wow!

[WoodlandGladeFairy]

Absolutely wonderful performance of Onegin tonight from The Royal Ballet, Yasmine Naghdi and Federico Bonelli were emotionally devastating in the final act. Anna Rose O'Sullivan was perfect as Olga, beautiful jumps and pure joy. Joseph Sissens was lovely as Lensky, not forgetting Bennet Gartside as Prince Gremin, dignified and honourable.

 

A truly wonderful evening at the Royal Opera House, adore the music of Tchaikovsky so much, one of my favourite ballets as well.

 

This was a lovely birthday treat from my sister and it seemed apt that the two lead female characters in the story are sisters too! 

Edited January 24, 2020 by WoodlandGladeFairy

[alison]

Three debuts tonight: I thought Naghdi virtually pitch-perfect as the gauche Tatiana in Acts I and II, although not quite as convincing as princess, wife and mother in the Act III ballroom scene.  She certainly gave everything to that final scene.  Anna Rose O'Sullivan danced beautifully (goes without saying?) as Olga: I do tend to prefer to see a little foreshadowing in Act I of her heedlessness in Act II so that it doesn't come as a total surprise - but if it was there I missed it.  Joseph Sissens danced equally beautifully as Lensky, but seemingly without really using the choreography to tell us much about the character or his feelings: it's his first major role of that type, and I'm sure it will come - after all, as someone reminded me this evening, Bonelli's acting skills weren't exactly impressive when he first joined the company, and look at him now   The corps de ballet aren't always making the most of their little "cameo" moments at various times during the ballet, but I'm assuming they are more or less all new to their roles, and that that's the price you have to pay for the work being out of the repertoire for 5 years.

[librarianne]

I thought Naghdi would be good as Tatiana, but reading these amazing reviews makes me regret not booking for her debut. I will definitely try to see her in February! She has always been a beautiful dancer, but it's great to see her also doing so well in a more dramatic role.

To be honest, I've never been a fan of Bonelli and really can't see him as Onegin, but who knows, maybe he'll surprise me!

[Sim]

22 minutes ago, librarianne said:

I thought Naghdi would be good as Tatiana, but reading these amazing reviews makes me regret not booking for her debut. I will definitely try to see her in February! She has always been a beautiful dancer, but it's great to see her also doing so well in a more dramatic role.

To be honest, I've never been a fan of Bonelli and really can't see him as Onegin, but who knows, maybe he'll surprise me!

Onegin has always been one of Bonelli’s great roles, and tonight reminded us why!  

[Xandra Newman]

A memorable night, what more can I say. I have seen all four casts but this cast was a very special one. Frederic Bonelli and Yasmine Naghdi look so good together. Anna-Rose O'Sullivan is the best Olga out of the four dancers cast, on a par with Akane Takada who I also liked  a lot. (I was disappointed in Hayward's Olga, besides her usual pretty dancing any depth in characterisation was absent). Yes Osipova is a glorious Tatiana, dancing in her typical unpredictable style, but with Naghdi we got a fresh, new and unique portrayal of Tatiana, she made the role her own, and in each Act she got the characterisation just right. I loved her in Act III as princess and married woman, dancing so tenderly with her husband in the ballroom scene, and her final pd2 with Frederico Bonelli brought tears into eyes. Yasmine was very clearly moved during the curtain call (I sat very close to the stage and I could see she had tears in her eyes, she looked emotionally drained). I have seen Naghdi dance Olga in 2012 and 2015 and to see her dancing Tatiana tonight was very special. A wonderful debut by the RB's newest Tatiana. Joseph Sissens  was a lovely Lensky but not quite in the same league as Matthew Ball who I love in this role. Bennet Gartside was very moving as Prince Gremin. 

[capybara]

The mark of a great Tatiana is that she is able, in Act 3, to show us a mature and contented (if not quite fulfilled) woman - in contrast to the introverted/fixated girl of earlier in the ballet. Some dancers come across as too 'knowing' in Acts 1 and 2; others are still too girlish in Act 3. Yasmine Naghdi got the development of Tatiana's character  'spot on' and recalled to mind the remarkable performance of the very young Alina Cojocaru 18 years ago or so.

Last night's cast is, for me, the definitive one overall of this run.............Bonelli, Naghdi, O'Sullivan, Gartside. Wow! And Joseph Sissens gave a very good first showing as Lensky too.

[ninamargaret]

it's criminal that no recording has been made of this run of performances - preferably this cast.

[capybara]

27 minutes ago, ninamargaret said:

it's criminal that no recording has been made of this run of performances - preferably this cast.

 

I think it's only Stuttgart who are allowed to record Onegin.

[Xandra Newman]

34 minutes ago, capybara said:

The mark of a great Tatiana is that she is able, in Act 3, to show us a mature and contented (if not quite fulfilled) woman - in contrast to the introverted/fixated girl of earlier in the ballet. Some dancers come across as too 'knowing' in Acts 1 and 2; others are still too girlish in Act 3. Yasmine Naghdi got the development of Tatiana's character  'spot on' and recalled to mind the remarkable performance of the very young Alina Cojocaru 18 years ago or so.

Last night's cast is, for me, the definitive one overall of this run.............Bonelli, Naghdi, O'Sullivan, Gartside. Wow! And Joseph Sissens gave a very good first showing as Lensky too.

 

I totally agree. Naghdi got the balance in her characterisation throughout all three acts so very right, nothing extreme nor overdone nor overacted. The shy, bookish Tatiana, clearly disinterested in what was going on around her, was living in the moment, in her own fantasy world through the book she was reading. Her delicate acting, once she is introduced to Onegin, her hope of first love, then feeling he isn't really interested in her, her insistence trying to attract his attention during her birthday party followed by the realisation he just isn't interested in her was beautifully portrayed in her solo. The bedroom scene and their pd2 really felt dreamlike when she let go of any character restrained, her pd2 with Bennet Gartside tender, mature, and gorgeous. What I liked so much about her Tatiana, besides her beautiful classical dancing, was that I really felt she took me on a journey with her, never was there a brusque sudden change or unpredictability, her characterisation (and the development) just flowed from one act into the other. For me too, this cast is the definitive one as I feel somehow this is how John Cranko must have wanted the ballet to be danced, and the characters to be portrayed. 

[annamk]

43 minutes ago, capybara said:

 recalled to mind the remarkable performance of the very young Alina Cojocaru 18 years ago or so

 

 

Watching the mirror pdd last night I was thinking that although it was pretty good technically it had nothing like the electricity that was between Cojocaru and Kobborg, they set the bar so high. 

 

9 minutes ago, capybara said:

 

I think it's only Stuttgart who are allowed to record Onegin.

 

The Stuttgart recording with Vogel was a masterclass. 

 

[zxDaveM]

15 minutes ago, annamk said:

 

Watching the mirror pdd last night I was thinking that although it was pretty good technically it had nothing like the electricity that was between Cojocaru and Kobborg, they set the bar so high. 

 

 

indeed they did - but they would also have had the advantage of dancing a lot together, not just in Onegin, to generate that electricity from the chemistry they always had. Ms Naghdi always seems to have the ability to go up a notch after her debut performance, so the next show will be even better! Which will be nice for us 🙂

[Sim]

6 minutes ago, zxDaveM said:

 

indeed they did - but they would also have had the advantage of dancing a lot together, not just in Onegin, to generate that electricity from the chemistry they always had. Ms Naghdi always seems to have the ability to go up a notch after her debut performance, so the next show will be even better! Which will be nice for us 🙂

And of course they are a real couple whose love and understanding affected and deepened all their performances.  

[bangorballetboy]

1 hour ago, ninamargaret said:

it's criminal that no recording has been made of this run of performances - preferably this cast.

 

No commercial recording.  The ROH makes archive recordings.

[JohnS]

20 minutes ago, bangorballetboy said:

The ROH makes archive recordings.

The ROH’s archives must be a real treasure trove and I appreciate they’re there for dancers/coaches etc to consult and probably for documentary makers but is there any public access or even a listing of what’s in the archives?

[standingticket]

It was my first Onegin of the run last night and I'm very happy it was - a great performance all round.

 

I felt that Naghdi seemed quite nervous in Act I, and perhaps most noticeably in the bedroom/mirror pd2 when I felt like she had too much tension in her body and it seemed a bit 'placed'. However, by Act II and very definitely by Act III she was completely engrossing. I actually particularly enjoyed her pd2 with Gremin in Act III, which i felt conveyed an unusual emotional complexity - what had gone before had not been erased, there was sorrow in her serenity. And obviously the final pd2 blew everyone away with its intensity, and at least from the amphitheatre, Naghdi appeared to be sobbing when she and Bonelli took their bow immediately after curtain down. I think, as others have suggested, she will get even better in this role (perhaps particularly at the mirror pd2) in future performance, with debut nerves out of the way.

 

I thought Anna Rose O'Sullivan was marvellous, as ever - it's the little details she adds to her characterisation alongside her impeccable dancing that make all the difference. In the earlier acts I found myself being somewhat more cross at Onegin's interference with Olga and Lensky's relationship (which Act I set up so beautifully) than at his treatment of Tatiana. I probably agree with those who have suggested that Sissens will evolve his portrayal of Lensky, as it was a bit one dimensional in places. However, I thought that his solo before the duel was wonderful, and made me look forward to the day when he gets to perform Des Grieux...

 

Anyway, a wonderful night watching three stunning debuts alongside a masterful Onegin from Bonelli. 

Edited January 25, 2020 by standingticket
spelling

[Odyssey]

I would be interested to know a little more about how strict the rules governing the recording of Onegin if anyone could enlighten me. Does this also relate to short extracts such as the mirror pas de deux as I notice there has been no 'taster' videos released from the Opera House?  I recall there was an extract many years back of Natalia Markova in a BBC series ( perhaps Ballerina). Is it indeed the case that only Stuttgart can record it and for how many years is this in place?   

Edited January 25, 2020 by Odyssey

[San Perregrino]

 

20 minutes ago, standingticket said:

I felt that Naghdi seemed quite nervous in Act I, and perhaps most noticeably in the bedroom/mirror pd2 when I felt like she had too much tension in her body and it seemed a bit 'placed'.

From where I was sitting in the OS, for me, the mirror pd2 was outstanding in its intensity. The freedom,  abandon and seeming recklessness which which both Naghdi and Bonelli danced with one another and through which the characters melted into one another and gave substance to the premise that this sequence is a wild dream, a young woman’s fantasy. As the saying goes at times it was difficult to know where one dancer ended and the other began. 

[cjp]

 

I couldn't agree more with all the glowing comments about Yasmine Nagdhi’s Tatiana last night.  Her characterisation was acutely observed in every detail and her despair and anguish at the end were palpable. I was fairly close to the stage and as Xandra Newman has said, could see that she was emotionally drained and so immersed in the part that she still appeared to be in tears as the curtain came back up. 

 

Her precise drawing of the character’s arc from sensitive, bookish young girl all the way through to the wise, mature and beautiful (though heartbroken) woman at the end was amazing to see, not one expression wasted in telling her story. She and Anna Rose O’Sullivan as Olga had a great rapport and gave us a very sweet, believable sisterly relationship. Towards the end her love and tenderness for her husband shone through with such conviction; the contrast to the passionate attraction she still feels for Onegin crystal clear, and her loss and heartbreak in the final scene were pretty devastating.  

 

Federico Bonelli was also superb.  I saw him in the last run of Onegin and it is a long time ago now to compare impressions, but I thought that the coldness had been notched down a degree and his nuanced performance teased a glimmering of sympathy in me by the end, something that rarely happens for me with this character.  His realisation of what he had done in killing his friend, the enormity of it hitting him suddenly, was very well done.  I would also agree that he and Yasmine were wonderful together. 

 

Elsewhere, I thought that Anna Rose O’Sullivan inhabited Olga in every gesture and expression, her playful radiance at the beginning a powerful contrast to the way we finally see her, broken with remorse after the duel.  Joseph Sissons’ dancing as Lensky was very beautiful to watch, and his solo before the duel was really moving.  Ultimately I did feel that they were more secure in their individual performances than as a couple, the only slight reservation I had.  Bennet Gartside gave us a very sympathetic performance as Prince Gremin, he and Yasmine’s Tatiana a perfect foil to her relationship with Onegin.  In fact it was a wonderful performance by all the cast, including some gorgeous dancing by the corps.

 

Basically I was so immersed in this performance that I wanted to ‘fast forward’ through the intervals, the same feeling as with a book you can’t put down.   It was nice to see many people were standing in the stalls at the end, it was so well deserved by everyone, but for Yasmine in particular - just wow.

 

 

[Xandra Newman]

prs59 wrote:

"From where I was sitting in the OS, for me, the mirror pd2 was outstanding in its intensity. The freedom,  abandon and seeming recklessness which which both Naghdi and Bonelli danced with one another and through which the characters melted into one another and gave substance to the premise that this sequence is a wild dream, a young woman’s fantasy. As the saying goes at times it was difficult to know where one dancer ended and the other began. "

 

 

This is how I experienced their mirror pd2 too, danced with total abandon, to me she literally threw herself into this pd2, it's such a whirlwind of a pd2. As for "nervousness" in Act 1(?), if to be perceived as "nervousness" (which I didn't, sitting in the middle of 3rd row OS), Naghdi herself wasn't nervous, if at all it was part of her character portrayal: a young, introvert, shy, "nervous" Tatiana meeting the handsome Onegin, her first close encounter with a strange man, feeling the first flutters of love. Her restrained contrasted beautifully with her sister Olga, an extrovert, flirting girl.

Edited January 25, 2020 by Xandra Newman
typo

[librarianne]

12 hours ago, librarianne said:

I thought Naghdi would be good as Tatiana, but reading these amazing reviews makes me regret not booking for her debut. I will definitely try to see her in February! She has always been a beautiful dancer, but it's great to see her also doing so well in a more dramatic role.

To be honest, I've never been a fan of Bonelli and really can't see him as Onegin, but who knows, maybe he'll surprise me!

 

11 hours ago, Sim said:

Onegin has always been one of Bonelli’s great roles, and tonight reminded us why!  

Fair enough, I should refrain from judging him until I've seen him as Onegin (which I am hoping to be able to do this run) and not let my experience of seeing him in other roles bias my opinion. 

Part of the problem, I think, is that I have a rather rigid idea of what Onegin is like - hopefully, seeing a couple of different casts this time will let me see it from another angle.

[JohnS]

Fabulous to see all these reviews from last night  - thank you all. And very much looking forward to 24 February to see this cast.

[Dawnstar]

Same here, except I'm booked for 21st February.

[standingticket]

23 minutes ago, Xandra Newman said:

As for "nervousness" in Act 1(?), if to be perceived as "nervousness" (which I didn't, sitting in the middle of 3rd row OS), Naghdi herself wasn't nervous, if at all it was part of her character portrayal: a young, introvert, shy, "nervous" Tatiana meeting the handsome Onegin, her first close encounter with a strange man, feeling the first flutters of love. Her restrained contrasted beautifully with her sister Olga, an extrovert, flirting girl

 

I agree entirely with this and thought her characterisation worked very well for the rest of acts 1+2. But as the mirror pd2 is a dream, I don't think Tatiana should seem 'nervous' or awkward there, but rather heart-in-mouth, breathless, swept away. I'm also not saying that I think Naghdi didn't achieve this, but just that in contrast to the rest of her performance, and perhaps to others I have seen dance this in the past (Laura Morera was the person who kept coming to mind) I didn't 'feel' it as much. 

 

Maybe it was being at the back of the amphitheatre, I don't know. But it is interesting to discuss and to hear different views

[Anna C]

27 minutes ago, cjp said:

His realisation of what he had done in killing his friend, the enormity of it hitting him suddenly, was very well done. 

 

This is a moment that I also think Thiago Soares does exceptionally well.  He made me catch my breath when I saw him on opening afternoon.

 

I’m absolutely delighted but not surprised to hear about Naghdi and Bonelli’s wonderful performances. 

[Sim]

10 minutes ago, standingticket said:

 

I agree entirely with this and thought her characterisation worked very well for the rest of acts 1+2. But as the mirror pd2 is a dream, I don't think Tatiana should seem 'nervous' or awkward there, but rather heart-in-mouth, breathless, swept away. I'm also not saying that I think Naghdi didn't achieve this, but just that in contrast to the rest of her performance, and perhaps to others I have seen dance this in the past (Laura Morera was the person who kept coming to mind) I didn't 'feel' it as much. 

 

Maybe it was being at the back of the amphitheatre, I don't know. But it is interesting to discuss and to hear different views

I think Xandra was referring to the first scene, where Naghdi very convincingly portrays the nerves of a young girl in the first flush of love/physical attraction and doesn’t know quite know  what to do with them.  I don’t think she was referring to nerves in the dream sequence, where Tatiana  imagined herself as Onegin’s object of desire so beautifully, and he obliged her passion with such ardour and elegance.   Nope, no nerves there,  from my perception anyway.  

[capybara]

In the bedroom/dream scene, I received from Naghdi  a girl transported by love/desire - in other words, spot on. And I was very close to her - lucky me!

In the first part of Act 1, her Tatiana was tentative and socially inept. - again, spot on.

[standingticket]

1 hour ago, Sim said:

I think Xandra was referring to the first scene,

 

Thanks. I only felt the need to clarify, as Xandra's response read as though she thought I had been critical of Naghdi appear nervous in the whole first act, when I mainly meant the mirror pd2. I felt she looked a bit nervous before that too, but as you have all pointed out (and I agree) that is entirely in keeping with the story/characterisation. 

Edited January 25, 2020 by standingticket