Royal Ballet - The Cellist, Dances at a Gathering

[JohnS]

I’d strongly recommend watching MJW’s ‘Dances at a Gathering’ link - best remedy for the coronavirus speculation.

[LinMM]

That clip was shown at the cinema screening on Tuesday. 

Its the first time I've been to a live screening and certainly the Duke of Yorks cinema in Brighton ...especially the back row with the extra leg room was extremely comfortable. 

What an evening of Dance though....to be in tears at two bállets on the same night and twice in one ballet ...is pretty unusual for me! 

Its been a rather emotional week for me for all sorts of reasons so I think I was pretty open to these performances and I often think the overall mood you are in on the night can colour your experience considerably. 

 

Dances at a Gathering has been a favourite of mine since I first saw it in the 70's with the casts listed so clearly by Li Tai Po earlier trying to remember who wore which colour though was a step too far though for all of them I remember David Wall in green and Nureyev in brown and that's it of the women I only remember Lyn Seymour in green Laura Connor in Blue and I think Ann Jenner in pink but not absolutely sure. 

For me this ballet will always be a double winner. The Chopin music is close to my heart probably from when I was about six years old sitting at night time at the top of the stairs to listen to the lovely music being played downstairs on an old 78 record for the first time.....that turned out to be Les Sylphides. 

Years later I belonged to a Polish Dance group in London and really got to know those mazurkas and old Polish songs and eventually went to Poland to Warsaw ( an ambition since reading The Silver Sword) and to finally see Chopins place of birth. 

 

So Chopin is sort of in the blood so to speak and if I was a pianist it's Chopin I'd most love to play.

If I was a dancer it's this ballet I'd most like to dance in.

 

The performance of this on Tuesday was just wonderful and reminded me just why I love it so much. 

I love Jerome Robbins approach to choreography ....finding the dance for yourself in the music ....marrying the dance to it ....and there is some stunning choreography in this piece that he found/ created. I love the costumes ....surely every female dancers dream to wear ...and the simple backdrop. Heaven is set! 

The dancers on Tuesday were all of them superb  and did justice both to Robbins and Chopin and it seems mean to pick out anyone in particular but I have to say Bracewell and Hayward were magic together. I haven't seen much of Bracewell since he was with BRB and know he has been injured but he was perfect in this ...he really got the body movement and moved round that stage and Hayward just captured the whole spirit of everything she danced in. She is not the most classically perfect dancer but she embodies Dance in a unique way and always takes you beyond the technical level ...you are just watching her dance. She would have been a dream for Robbins. 

I loved Campbell in this he looked so joyful and like Bracewell can really move around that stage!  Morera in her role was very humorous ....though nobody does that funny little hip swing balancé in the mocking way that Seymour did it which made you warm to her predicament where she can't get any male to be interested in her! But Morera was still delightful. 

Nunez and Bonelli had me in tears with their pas de deux near the end ...so beautiful. And then was in tears again at that point where they are all facing the audience and in unison perform that simple port de bras carrying the arm to 5th and open. You know it's all coming to an end and they will soon all go on their way but you don't want them to! At least I don't ....not this lot of dancers ....I just want them to carry on dancing...........

 

I don't know whether Dances was so inspiring that it opened up a window of receptivity towards the second piece that evening The Cellist but I really loved this as a whole. I loved the music and how it connected together with the famous pieces. 

The performances of Sambe Cuthbertson and Ball were just outstanding and I thought the whole concept of the piece was ingenious..having a dancer represent the cello like that and loved the 'duets' between Sambe and Cuthbertson. 

I didn't mind that it wasn't particularly balletic choreography.....some of it was really interesting though towards the end one or two lifts had got a bit repetitive.  It was like an experience ....just being thrown into du Pre's life. There were a couple of times ...when she first gets involved with Barenboim for instance when I thought having the extra musicians in the background were a bit superfluous as you just wanted to see the main characters and enjoy the intensity of their relationship ....and that intensity is best conveyed with that concentration on main dancers I think. 

Having that awful disease multiple sclerosis was an important part of Du Pre's life so I'm sure Marston wanted to show this as well with all the various people trying to help ( probably proclaiming miraculous treatments and cures etc ) It was an onslaught on the stage but then the disease was an onslaught on Du Pre. 

The final denouement with Cuthbertson sitting in the chair with just her memories to look back on and the cello ...Sambe running around lost without his player was just heartbreaking and certainly made me cry. Another poster said that she believed  Sambe was a cello and I know just what they mean ....he was ....an incredible performance and Cuthbertson got across brilliantly the joy and ecstasy of playing the cello and being at one with the music that was so evident when watching Du Pre. 

For me this ballet worked because it drew me into a fascinating story and made me feel both the joy and pain in Du Pre's life and her intense relationship to music. 

Im sure Marston may need to do a bit of  tweaking here and there but essentially I think it's a gem of a ballet and can't wait to see it again next Wednesday with the second cast ...and hopefully Corrales as Barenboim! 

So completely wrung out at the end of Tuesday night and this was just at the cinema! A great evening of ballet. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Xandra Newman]

What a beautiful "review" LinMM.

More and more, when watching the RB and their sublime dancers, when attending RB performances,  it provides me with an escape from  daily life and all its worries. When I go to the ROH I feel in heaven, I can escape from the world and all its daily worries.

Thank you to all the dancers who provide us with  such amazing performances! 

 

[FionaM]

@LinMMcompletely agree with your views on both.  
 

I could have watched many more combinations of ’Dances’ as I thought Fumi, Luca and Valentino were under represented.  

 

The story and superb performances by the 3 leads in The Cellist had me in tears.  What a phenomenal role for Marci.  I cannot wait to hear how Calvin Richardson gets on with it.

[Rob S]

Just a quick post before I go to bed, more pics when I wake up.....enjoyed DAAG so much more than opening night, and Beatriz was fabulous as the Cellist

 

 

[JohnS]

Yesterday I saw the ROH circulated the full Nuñez/Bonelli Dances at a Gathering PDD, a real gem which I’d been keen to post here. But I had difficulty copying the link and can now no longer find it - seems to have vanished although that may well be a reflection of my IT ineptitude. But did others see it and is anyone able to share it? 

 

 

[ctas]

I really enjoyed last night’s performance. I wasn’t totally sold on The Cellist but found it very moving and emotional at the end, and Beatriz Stix-Brunell was really wonderful in the role. 

[Geoff]

On 25/02/2020 at 23:24, maryrosesatonapin said:

Dances at a Gathering was delightful - except for the piano accompaniment which at times didn't do justice to Chopin's exquisite score.  I have played most of those pieces myself and at times I cringed.

 

The pianist was bad again last night. For those who know this music (I too played some of these pieces back in the day and have been listening to this repertoire for more than fifty years) it was impossible not to be distracted by the constant wrong notes, lousy technique, leaden phrasing and a basic sense of panicky incompetence, at several points seeming to be just about to break down completely. All credit to the dancers for keeping going even when the pianist couldn't.

 

A giveaway was that his mistakes were in different places from his last performance. In other words it is not just that he finds some sections hard and hopes to get past them without injury - which would be bad enough - but it is clear he really doesn’t know this music and has not paid us the courtesy of learning it and practising to the proper standard. A friend sitting where he could see the page-turner said the look on this person’s face said it all. To put it simply, I and my guests were not able to enjoy DAAG properly as the pianist’s mistakes kept getting in the way.

 

This is not easy music to play but it is standard repertoire, well within the normal range of all performing pianists and not exceptionally difficult. So how come the ROH saw fit to give this highly exposed music to someone who can’t play it? A careful reading of the programme suggests that the head of the ballet music staff, deciding to save money on paying a freelance pianist, looked round the staff players for someone from in-house to do the job and chose to appoint...himself. And then he is given a solo credit in prime position on the front page of the programme, unlike the cellist in the second work, buried inside after “artists of the Royal Ballet”.

 

This is a disgrace and I know from talking to others in the interval that mine will not be the only letter of complaint to the ROH.

 

On the positive side - although the pianist got polite applause (someone near me said “is it ok to boo at Covent Garden?”) - the ovation which greeted the wonderful Hetty Snell at the end of The Cellist said all one needed to know about the musical taste of the ROH audience.

[bridiem]

44 minutes ago, ctas said:

I really enjoyed last night’s performance. I wasn’t totally sold on The Cellist but found it very moving and emotional at the end, and Beatriz Stix-Brunell was really wonderful in the role. 

 

I found it very moving at the end too this time, which I didn't at the live screening. Seeing it live made it more possible to block out the irrelevant characters on stage and focus mainly on the principal characters, but also to get a slightly clearer picture of the whole. I still found the first three quarters of the work very tedious and the choreographic style and vocabulary very limited and repetitive, but towards the end the clutter cleared somewhat and it was possible to get involved with what was happening. It's a shame, I think - there's a good chamber ballet (a bit like The Suit, which I really enjoyed) trying to get out of The Cellist, but there's just far too much going on to absolutely no point, and too much literalness (if that's a word) in the ideas. And too little dancing - the only people who actually dance to any degree are the Instrument (Calvin Richardson was very good, but didn't dominate in the way Sambé did on Tuesday) and the Conductor (Matthew Ball again, also very good with what he's asked to do). Beatriz Stix-Brunell as the Cellist was tremendous and really moving; but she does very little dancing - she spends most of her time being lifted, often with her legs in the air for no apparent reason, or turning/being turned on the spot. Without space and movement, dance can't breathe. (Maybe the set is partly to blame here? It seemed to take up a huge amount of space leaving little room for the dancers.) At any rate, I did at least get something out of it this time, and the dancers were excellent.

 

I loved Dances at a Gathering again. I'm interested to read the comments above about the piano playing - I did notice some fluffed notes, but I'm no expert and it didn't stop me enjoying either the music or the performance. Wonderful to see Tierney Heap (Green) back on stage, commanding and playful by turns; and Sarah Lamb (Pink) glittering like crystal. Marcelino Sambé (Brown) blazed around the stage with the most amazing charisma (and terrific technique). A beautiful and very moving performance.

[Richard LH]

45 minutes ago, ctas said:

I really enjoyed last night’s performance. I wasn’t totally sold on The Cellist but found it very moving and emotional at the end, and Beatriz Stix-Brunell was really wonderful in the role. 

 

Yes whilst my overall view of "The Cellist" remains as posted previously,   Beatriz  really did justice to what she was given to work with. I thought she, Calvin Richardson, and Matthew Ball actually worked better together than the main cast, especially with the various movements required of them (which seem to involve  du Pre being lifted around for longer than she is on the ground) .  Particularity  to be commended since Ball was a last minute stand in. 

Whereas Sambe (great in "Dances" last night  by the way)  was well forward and  noticeable as the cello,  perhaps Calvin Richardson (tremendously lithe)  played it  better, by somehow being a bit more reserved ..after all he is just the instrument for the player and the music, not the main character. Not sure about the moustache  though...!

It was great to see the bouncy Miss Stix-Brunell  so delighted with the applause at the end.  She gave her younger self  (Emma Lucano) one of her bunches of flowers, which was a lovely and thoughtful  touch. 

[Richard LH]

Bridiem... you got in just before me and we seem to have noticed similar things....yes Sambe did rather dominate (the word I was looking for) and for that  reason, as  I explained,  I think I preferred the more restrained Richardson.

You reminded me that  I meant to express my delight at seeing Tierney Heap  back on stage after a long absence through injury. 

I  noticed quite a few fluffed notes in DAAG as well...not sure what was going on but the pianist did seem to be having a particularly bad night. 

[Jamesrhblack]

41 minutes ago, bridiem said:

Wonderful to see Tierney Heap (Green) back on stage, commanding and playful by turns;

 

So pleased she’s back. She really is one of my favourite dancers and I’ve missed seeing her 🙂

[ctas]

Me too, Tierney Heap has such wonderful stage presence and I couldn’t believe it’s been almost two years since she was last on stage. A very welcome return.

[ninamargaret]

Interesting to read the comments about the pianist, considering that he is the same Robert Clark who received many favourable comments for his playing in The Concert!

[Rob S]

 

 

 

 

[Scheherezade]

So, first of all Robert Clark’s professed shortcomings at the keyboard didn’t at all diminish my delight at DAAG - and how amazing that the RB can currently sport two separate casts equally able to thrill.  

I would say that the other posters have more or less summed up my reactions to last night. As with The Cellist on opening night, Sambe pretty much stole the show in last night’s DAAG - lyrical, impetuous and eye catching in turn. And, yes, so good to see Tierney Heap back, and didn’t she seem thrilled both at her bouquets and at the audience reaction?

On the topic of which (audience reaction), where I was sitting there was a collective “Aaah” at Beatrix Stix-Brunell’s lovely and spontaneous  recognition of Emma Lucano’s delightful performance as young Jackie. 
Beatrix’s reading of Jackie was very different from Cuthbertson’s: sparkier, less wistful, a very engaging performance with notably strong stage presence.

I enjoyed Calvin Richardson’s performance in the abstract but felt that Sambe embodied the cello more strongly and I don’t think that this embodiment was a bad thing, merely different, an interpretation that gives a different slant to the role of the cello in Du Pre’s life: with Sambe the cello was her motivation, with Richardson it was the expression of who she was. 

Interestingly I felt that Matthew Ball’s role came across more strongly with this cast, although that could well be because the cello was more integrated and  dominated less.  
So, in summary, two very different but equally valid performances of the Cellist but my original views (that the work would be better largely as a three hander at half the length) still stand.

And Dances at a Gathering was a sheer delight from start to finish with every member of both casts. And, by the way, I felt that Meaghan Grace Hinkis came across much more strongly last night than in anything I have seen her in so far. Please revive this work soon!

Edited February 29, 2020 by Scheherezade

[Geoff]

2 hours ago, ninamargaret said:

Interesting to read the comments about the pianist, considering that he is the same Robert Clark who received many favourable comments for his playing in The Concert!

 

Indeed. However I wrote nothing about the general level of ability of this player, only his choice of putting himself at the centre of a ballet when not on top of the music (born out by his performances throughout the current run: yesterday was not an exception, simply the worst to date, hope they clean up the track of the live transmission if they are going to issue a dvd). 

 

As to The Concert, though also made by Robbins to pieces by Chopin, it is less than half the running time (only six pieces as against DAAG's eighteen) and most of those are carried by the orchestra rather than requiring over an hour of exposed solo piano. When The Concert works the audience is laughing over the music, the role of the pianist requiring comic timing - or at least being a good sport - at least as much as musical skill. For the record I also thought Clark was funny in The Concert, because the role of the pianist is a funny part, but this is off the point.

 

As the old joke goes, how do I get to Covent Garden? Practice, dear boy, practice...

[LinMM]

Yes please bring back Dances soon . It wasn’t originally scheduled for this year.. I am assuming ....so would be happy to see back next season or the one after! 

[MrsBBB]

6 hours ago, Geoff said:

To put it simply, I and my guests were not able to enjoy DAAG properly as the pianist’s mistakes kept getting in the way.

 

Ditto. I had to put Nelson Freire on afterwards to get that terrible performance out of my head. The solo piano playing at RB performances has been rather poor ever since Philip Gammon retired. It’s a real pity when the company is on such strong form to have their artistry marred (for those who care about / notice the music) by poor pianism. 

[Geoff]

Only just caught up with this Barenboim comment (haven’t gone behind the paywall yet to find the rest):

 

https://slippedisc.com/2020/02/barenboim-is-charmed-by-jacqueline-du-pre-ballet/

 

[Geoff]

20 hours ago, MrsBBB said:

I had to put Nelson Freire on afterwards to get that terrible performance out of my head. The solo piano playing at RB performances has been rather poor ever since Philip Gammon retired. It’s a real pity when the company is on such strong form to have their artistry marred (for those who care about / notice the music) by poor pianism. 

 

Agreed. However you and I are clearly in some kind of minority: Sarah Crompton, in her review in last week's Observer newspaper, describes Robert Clark's performance as "magnificent". Maybe she never heard Rubinstein or Richter in this repertoire. 

[capybara]

31 minutes ago, Geoff said:

 

Agreed. However you and I are clearly in some kind of minority: Sarah Crompton, in her review in last week's Observer newspaper, describes Robert Clark's performance as "magnificent". Maybe she never heard Rubinstein or Richter in this repertoire. 

 

Aaaah! Rubenstein and Richter! I think that those of us on here who are of  'a certain age' will have been virtually brought up listening to LPs of these amazing pianists.

You are setting your standards very high indeed, Geoff.

But it does strike me that playing continuously for 70 minutes is a big ask.

[Geoff]

2 minutes ago, capybara said:

You are setting your standards very high indeed, Geoff.

 

Compton set the bar by using the word "magnificent" (what she actually wrote was "piano pieces of Chopin magnificently performed by Robert Clark"). Maybe you're right and she does not have a record collection, or at least does not listen to it regularly or with care (she is not a music critic, having come to ballet via reviewing theatre). I was lucky enough to hear both of these great pianists live a number of times. Magnificent indeed.

 

The main point however is a different one. If you look back at what I originally wrote, it was about basic competence in this repertoire (rather than the works being performed by a giant of piano history, which is of course a ridiculous expectation). It is about honouring Chopin by playing the notes correctly and well, and in so doing, honouring that wonderful ballet.

[ninamargaret]

I think there's a big difference between the pianist of your choice, be it Rubinstein, Richter, or in my case Ashkenazy, playing a selection of pieces in a recital or on disc, and as Capybara says a pianist playing for 70 minutes accompanying dancers and being unable to interpret the music as he may have wished. It's quite a big ask.

[Anna C]

2 hours ago, ninamargaret said:

I think there's a big difference between the pianist of your choice, be it Rubinstein, Richter, or in my case Ashkenazy, playing a selection of pieces in a recital or on disc, and as Capybara says a pianist playing for 70 minutes accompanying dancers and being unable to interpret the music as he may have wished. It's quite a big ask.

 

I agree.  The pianist is playing (almost literally) non-stop for over an hour without being able to easily see the dancers (which in class he can do) and without any breaks where he or she is assisted by the orchestra.   And he has to play non-stop Chopin!  I know Rob Clarke is used to playing for an hour when playing for Company Class but that’s different (much easier) music, there are breaks while the barres are moved/teacher explains the exercises and the pianist can see the dancers in front of him or her.  

 

I only noticed one wrong note during the cinema broadcast; was the other night’s performance much worse?

[li tai po]

Thank you, Geoff, for daring to voice your disappointment about the inadequate pianist for Dances at a Gathering.  You summed it up concisely "constant wrong notes, lousy technique, leaden phasing and a basic sense of panicky incompetence, at several points seeming to be just about to break down completely.  The look on the page turner's face said it completely".

 

Every night I have wanted to boo, but well-mannered dancers applaud him on to the stage.

 

Playing continuously for 70 minutes is a big ask, but then so is dancing Odette/Odile or Rudolf in Mayerling.  The Royal Ballet casts dancers who are capable of performing those roles.

 

Anthony Twiner was the first Royal Ballet pianist to perform this work; he played for every single performance in the 1970s, including the last revival in November 1976.  On at least one occasion he played the entire work at both matinee and evening performances.

 

Although Philip Gammon had played for the premiere of A Month in the Country in February 1976, he was not given the chance for DAAG in the final revival of November 1976.  He finally got to play for DAAG in 2008 and is on written record as saying that he had waited 30 years for the opportunity.

 

Philip played from memory without a score in front of him.  He sat in splendid isolation in the pit, without a page turner.  Then at the fourth or fifth performance, he made a mistake.

 

The green girl had just completed her waltz with the three boys who aren't interested and we were waiting for the brown boy's Etude solo, when Philip struck up the scherzo.  Tamara Rojo came running on and we were into the ten minutes of the scherzo.  While Philip was playing, Lynn Otto, the stage manager, came into the pit and whispered in his ear.  At the end of the scherzo, Philip went back to the Etude solo and then on to the final nocturne.

 

It later transpired that Tamara Rojo had been over-enthusiastic in the wings.  She had started running on early, Philip had seen her and immediately jumped into the scherzo.  This is an indication of how closely Philip watched the dancers for his timing and delicate phrasing.

 

What a class-act, consummate professional Philip Gammon was!

[capybara]

I was struck in the cinema this afternoon that the applause for Robert Clark was far louder and more prolonged than that for any of the dancers - despite the wrong notes and fudged sections which, unfortunately, were plain to hear. In one of the introductory snippets, a dancer mentions how good it was to have him working with them in the studio and, then, when they were on stage. So there is obviously a balance to be struck. Bringing in a concert pianist could well upset the symbiosis.

[JohnS]

On 29/02/2020 at 07:18, JohnS said:

Yesterday I saw the ROH circulated the full Nuñez/Bonelli Dances at a Gathering PDD, a real gem which I’d been keen to post here. But I had difficulty copying the link and can now no longer find it - seems to have vanished although that may well be a reflection of my IT ineptitude. But did others see it and is anyone able to share it? 

 

 

Apologies for quoting my own posts. I now think I must have been mistaken about the ROH circulating the first Nuñez/Bonelli pdd extra footage of Dances at a Gathering. I came across the opening Campbell solo but am not sure of its origin:

https://www.facebook.com/passionballet.topf.ru/videos/137311647554477/

 

The ROH has issued this pdd Nunez/Bonelli (their second - I can no longer find their first pdd)

https://www.facebook.com/royaloperahouse/videos/596720457547832/

 

[Mary]

1 hour ago, capybara said:

I was struck in the cinema this afternoon that the applause for Robert Clark was far louder and more prolonged than that for any of the dancers -

I have noticed this every single time there has been a solo instrumentalist or singer involved in any dance performance, completely regardless of the quality of their work.

Rather an odd phenomenon, but there will be some explanation in audience psychology!

 

[alison]

2 hours ago, li tai po said:

Philip played from memory without a score in front of him.  He sat in splendid isolation in the pit, without a page turner.  Then at the fourth or fifth performance, he made a mistake.

 

The green girl had just completed her waltz with the three boys who aren't interested and we were waiting for the brown boy's Etude solo, when Philip struck up the scherzo.  Tamara Rojo came running on and we were into the ten minutes of the scherzo.  While Philip was playing, Lynn Otto, the stage manager, came into the pit and whispered in his ear.  At the end of the scherzo, Philip went back to the Etude solo and then on to the final nocturne.

 

It later transpired that Tamara Rojo had been over-enthusiastic in the wings.  She had started running on early, Philip had seen her and immediately jumped into the scherzo.  This is an indication of how closely Philip watched the dancers for his timing and delicate phrasing.

 

Ah!  I remember that.  That's obviously why I thought they'd chopped and changed the running order in a previous run.

[capybara]

1 hour ago, Mary said:

I have noticed this every single time there has been a solo instrumentalist or singer involved in any dance performance, completely regardless of the quality of their work.

Rather an odd phenomenon, but there will be some explanation in audience psychology!

 

 

Yes and the same phenomenon applies to the orchestra at almost every performance. I always find myself saying that they might have been good but they were the accompaniment not the main act. I don't 'get' it!

[Candleque]

On 29/02/2020 at 01:49, Rob S said:

Beatriz was fabulous as the Cellist

 

Agree. Such a privilege to see her debut in such an important title role. Friday's show went way faster (a good thing) and stuck with me longer than opening night with the first cast tbh.

As a Beatriz Stix-Brunell fan, I hope she enjoyed every second and that her convincing performance leads to more opportunities. Must be hard to again be a wallflower princess in Swan Lake, while so many other first soloists get a shot at Odette / Odile.

ps: Felt really bad for Cesar Corrales having to miss this show, but I see that he is listed for Wed

[Fonty]

I see from the photos that the lead dancer hasn't been forced to wear a blonde wig in order to look more like Du Pre. 

 

I was worried that long fair hair might have been compulsory, and having seen some very unflattering wigs in the past (Titania in The Dream instantly comes to mind) I am very relieved about that.