Royal Ballet’s The Nutcracker Winter 2021/22

[Rob S]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[maryrosesatonapin]

I quite like the wigs!  I always assumed they were powdered (as in C18th French fairytales).  I also like Game of Thrones....

[LinMM]

Rob you don’t know who are the dancers in the Arabian above? 

[San Perregrino]

Great photos Rob.

For me, Yuhio Choe & Matty Ball gave a masterclass in pairing last night. Sublimely synchronised, in complete harmony, generous, graceful and gracious, elegant and unhurried, connected and comfortable with one another. A joy to watch. Goosebumps. 

Edited January 8, 2022 by prs59

[San Perregrino]

2 minutes ago, LinMM said:

Rob you don’t know who are the dancers in the Arabian above? 

Olivia Cowley & Nicol Edmonds

[alison]

I must admit that had I known Ball was going to be dancing I might have tried to get tickets for this one as well, given that I like Choe and we don't get that many chances to see her in a main role.  I saw her and Ella the previous time, and thought it was a less-than-ideal pairing because of their relative heights.  Best wishes to Ella for a speedy recovery, though, if such is needed.

[LinMM]

Thanks prs59! 
I still haven’t got Nicol Edmonds firmly planted in my dancer memory as yet for some reason but I should have recognised Olivia Cowley 🙄 

[Lizbie1]

Just now, LinMM said:

Thanks prs59! 
I still haven’t got Nicol Edmonds firmly planted in my dancer memory as yet for some reason but I should have recognised Olivia Cowley 🙄 

 

I didn't recognise her in that picture either.

[Guest oncnp]

Advice from Gary Avis vis IG stories

 

[Rob S]

48 minutes ago, Lizbie1 said:

 

I didn't recognise her in that picture either.

it’s not that bad is it?😆

[Lizbie1]

1 minute ago, Rob S said:

it’s not that bad is it?😆

 

It's not you, it's me!

[Rob S]

27 minutes ago, Lizbie1 said:

 

It's not you, it's me!

It’s Olivia Cowley! You’re just making it worse! 😆

[LinMM]

Ha ha love the Cast change thingy! 
Do they sell them in the shop! 

Rob S 😂😂

Wind up Prize : 🥇

 

[Rob S]

Mr O’Hare came out again this afternoon to tell us parts of the scenery were now working after overnight repairs 👏 The tree was still fully grown but the step/ledge at the front of it was fully down so we had a fort (not that I could see it from SCS D8 and the dolls house…and the float thing was back. I may have missed it last night/since the beginning of time but today we had some uplifting lighting effect on the wall behind it for the tree growing section.

 

Great dancing from Sophie Allnatt and Mr Junker as well 👏

Edited January 8, 2022 by Rob S

[MJW]

6 minutes ago, Rob S said:

Mr O’Hare came out again this afternoon to tell us parts of the scenery were now working after overnight repairs 👏 The tree was still fully grown but the step/ledge at the front of it was fully down so we had a fort (not that I could see it from SCS D8 and the dolls house…and the float thing was back. I may have missed it last night/since the beginning of time but today we had some uplifting lighting effect on the wall behind it for the tree growing section.

 

Great dancing from Sophie Allnatt and Mr Junker as well 👏

 

That's good news as I am going to this evening's performance 😀

[Dawnstar]

3 hours ago, LinMM said:

Thanks prs59! 
I still haven’t got Nicol Edmonds firmly planted in my dancer memory as yet for some reason but I should have recognised Olivia Cowley 🙄 

 

I'm the other way around: I find Edmonds very recognisable but frequently fail to recognise Cowley.

 

13 hours ago, Rob S said:

 

 

 

I find it interesting that Choe's SPF tutu looks to be of a slightly different design than the other SPFs' ones. Hers has the front of the bodice come down to a point at the bottom & the skirt looks to be separate. Whereas all the others I have seen photos of this season have a straight bottom of the bodice & the skirt looks to be attached. The decoration on the front of her bodice also looks to be in darker shades of pink than the others' (though I realise colours can look different due to lighting). Can anyone who's been watching this Nutcracker production for a long time recall if the tutu design has been amended in the last few years & she is still wearing an older design? That's the only possible explanation that comes to mind.

[AnticaFiamma]

Did Ryoichi Hirano play the Arabian dancer today? That sounds unusual!

[Rob S]

19 minutes ago, AnticaFiamma said:

Did Ryoichi Hirano play the Arabian dancer today? That sounds unusual!

Yes, Kevin O’Hare announced that he had asked to do it too

[Rob S]

🤔 I’ve just made it sound as though Kevin asked to join in, haven’t I! 

[emmarose]

On 07/01/2022 at 09:09, Anna C said:

The Sugarplum Prince (and Princess, come to that) haven’t always been blonde, just “frosted” (which I prefer).  In my 2000 Royal Ballet DVD, Yoshida and Cope (both dark haired) have their own hair which is just glittered - as Marcelino’s seems to be in the photos.  It looks much better, in my humble opinion.

 

I completely agree, I much prefer the 'frosting' of the hair, I am not a fan of those wigs, especially on darker featured people and if they have a heavier/dark brow, it really clashes.

I think Marci looks stunning here. 

[alison]

It struck me to wonder this afternoon whether the lack of wig was a deliberate choice, or simply because they hadn't had time to make him one given what appears - from what Kevin O'Hare said - to have been a very late cast change.  Perhaps we'll find out next year.

[alison]

2 hours ago, Rob S said:

Great dancing from Sophie Allnatt and Mr Junker as well 👏

 

Yes, I'd be very happy to see them again next year.

 

2 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

I find it interesting that Choe's SPF tutu looks to be of a slightly different design than the other SPFs' ones. Hers has the front of the bodice come down to a point at the bottom & the skirt looks to be separate. Whereas all the others I have seen photos of this season have a straight bottom of the bodice & the skirt looks to be attached. The decoration on the front of her bodice also looks to be in darker shades of pink than the others' (though I realise colours can look different due to lighting). Can anyone who's been watching this Nutcracker production for a long time recall if the tutu design has been amended in the last few years & she is still wearing an older design? That's the only possible explanation that comes to mind.

 

You do find with longer-running productions - Romeo's blue-green and white tunic is another case - that parts of the production get remade/redesigned at various times, and you may get a "mix and match" of costumes, so that may well be what's happened here.  I thought tutus were deliberately designed to split into two parts so that the sweaty bodices could be cleaned more often than the skirts needed to be, but perhaps that's not the case any longer.  I did notice that one of the Mirliton's costumes looked somewhat different from the others - wider orange bits - this afternoon, so perhaps that's another case of mixing new and old?  It can be quite a Royal Ballet history lesson to look inside some of the older costumes and see just who's worn them before you - and maybe a little intimidating if you find it's a Dowell or someone, too

 

44 minutes ago, AnticaFiamma said:

Did Ryoichi Hirano play the Arabian dancer today? That sounds unusual!

 

Kevin O'Hare said he offered to do it.  Most welcome in the circumstances, I'm sure - and Hirano and Hamilton did get very appreciative applause at the end.  It's a role I always liked Hirano in, anyway.

[Jamesrhblack]

Gosh, they work the dancers hard. Having been Clara and Hans-Peter this afternoon Sophie Allnatt and Joshua Junker have no time to rest on their laurels, but are back as Colombine and Harlqeuin. I know lots of others are also changing roles, but it’s salutary that even an afternoon as principal doesn’t get you a Saturday evening off at a busy and challenging time.

 

I see that Melissa Hamilton, having done the Arabian Dance this afternoon, is back as a Lead Flower (not even Rose Fairy). I think it’s been several seasons since she danced The Sugar-Plum Fairy (I’m not a Nutcracker aficionado and am here this evening essentially to see Laura Morera while I still can) and it reminds me of a time many years back when there were not enough performances for what were even principal dancers and you’d get to see Laura Connor as a Big Swan and Wendy Ellis as Zulme.

[JohnS]

23 minutes ago, alison said:

or simply because they hadn't had time to make him one

 

I’d be very surprised if that were the case as Sambe may already have had a stage rehearsal before Covid struck and many performances were cancelled. O’Sullivan/Sambe we’re scheduled to debut on Christmas Eve if I recall and there may have been photos of rehearsals although I can’t recall.

 

I very much enjoyed Act 1, particularly Sophie Allnatt’s Clara and the Snowflakes. There was much to like in Act 2 but I was expecting rather more from O’Sullivan/Sambe given how impressive they’ve been as a partnership in Romeo & Juliet and so much else. That said I’m delighted to have seen the performance and applaud the Royal Ballet in being able to stage Nutcracker given the problems caused by Covid and major electrical failures. Kevin O’Hare gave a very good introduction, apology and explanation.

 

Looking forward very much to this evening’s performance bringing the curtain down on Nutcracker.

 

 

 

[Rob S]

Marcelino didn’t have the rectangular thing attached to the back of his hair this time, looked even better

[Rob S]

 

 

 

[Dawnstar]

1 hour ago, Jamesrhblack said:

I see that Melissa Hamilton, having done the Arabian Dance this afternoon, is back as a Lead Flower (not even Rose Fairy). I think it’s been several seasons since she danced The Sugar-Plum Fairy (I’m not a Nutcracker aficionado and am here this evening essentially to see Laura Morera while I still can) and it reminds me of a time many years back when there were not enough performances for what were even principal dancers and you’d get to see Laura Connor as a Big Swan and Wendy Ellis as Zulme.

 

I didn't realise Hamilton used to do the Sugar Plum Fairy until I happened to be looking at some past casting on @Saodan's excellent site & spotted her name as doing the role. It looks like she last did the role in January 2018. I can't help feeling it must be likely to be a bit depressing for a dancer who has done the SPF to now be stuck mostly doing Lead Flowers or the Arabian. She hasn't even done many Rose Fairy performances this run.

[MJW]

2 hours ago, JohnS said:

 

I’d be very surprised if that were the case as Sambe may already have had a stage rehearsal before Covid struck and many performances were cancelled. O’Sullivan/Sambe we’re scheduled to debut on Christmas Eve if I recall and there may have been photos of rehearsals although I can’t recall.

 

I very much enjoyed Act 1, particularly Sophie Allnatt’s Clara and the Snowflakes. There was much to like in Act 2 but I was expecting rather more from O’Sullivan/Sambe given how impressive they’ve been as a partnership in Romeo & Juliet and so much else. That said I’m delighted to have seen the performance and applaud the Royal Ballet in being able to stage Nutcracker given the problems caused by Covid and major electrical failures. Kevin O’Hare gave a very good introduction, apology and explanation.

 

Looking forward very much to this evening’s performance bringing the curtain down on Nutcracker.

 

 

 

Hope you are enjoying this evening’s performance. Extra snow and glitter tonight!

[capybara]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I didn't realise Hamilton used to do the Sugar Plum Fairy until I happened to be looking at some past casting on @Saodan's excellent site & spotted her name as doing the role. It looks like she last did the role in January 2018. I can't help feeling it must be likely to be a bit depressing for a dancer who has done the SPF to now be stuck mostly doing Lead Flowers or the Arabian. She hasn't even done many Rose Fairy performances this run.

Melisa Hamilton was scheduled to appear with Roberto Bolle and Friends this week in Dubai and Abu Dhabi but some participants/staff tested positive and couldn’t travel so the show was postponed.

Therefore, what she was dancing this week must have been as a result of covering for others.

[FionaM]

Further to the comment about Yuhui Choe’s SPF costume colours being  different … I happened across this photo  which shows the more orange fabric of 10+ years ago 

 

https://www.instagram.com/sweetballet_np/p/CX3_PQmL-IT/?utm_medium=copy_link

[Dawnstar]

It certainly looks like Choe's been wearing the same tutu for the last decade+ then.

 

To add to the confusion, it occurred to me to look at the photos on Alastair Muir's website and there are some of Bussell from 1999 & 2001 and Yanowsky from 2001 and they are both wearing the "usual" style. https://photos.alastairmuir.com/search/?q=Nutcracker&c=photos&scope=node&scopeValue=2bNGr#i=0 So perhaps Choe's tutu has always been different from all the others for some unknown reason!

[Nina99]

1 hour ago, capybara said:

Melisa Hamilton was scheduled to appear with Roberto Bolle and Friends this week in Dubai and Abu Dhabi but some participants/staff tested positive and couldn’t travel so the show was postponed.

Therefore, what she was dancing this week must have been as a result of covering for others.

 

 

Vadim Muntagirov posted a couple of stories on IG last week showing himself and Fumi Kaneko doing a couple of rehearsals, one in full costume, of the PDD from Don Q. I wonder if this was for the same gala in Dubai. The show has now been postponed to February apparently, which might clash with Vadim’s rehearsals for Swan Lake in March

Edited January 8, 2022 by Nina99

[JennyTaylor]

Onto this evening's performance where I was totally spoiled by a seat in Row A of the Orch Stalls which I picked up as a Return.  This was my first venture out post Omicron scares and I think I only nerved myself as I did have a seat with no one in front of me and it was also on the end of the row. It was marvellous and what I particularly noticed was how I could hear the orchestra astonishingly so much better than even a few rows back.... and I could see them which I also really enjoyed. 

 

As soon as the overture started, I was misty eyed; by the end of Act 1, tears were rolling down my cheeks, so moved was I by the beauty of the music, the ballet and sheer emotional experience. I suppose the Nutcracker, always has connotations with my childhood,  and I can't believe there was a time when I began to think it was boring. These days, the very challenging times we live in, seem to make every live ballet performance I see extra precious.  

 

Kevin O'Hare came out at the start with quite a heartfelt speech where he explained about the technical issues, celebrated that all advertised Principals were actually dancing and thanked everyone for all their efforts in putting on the show tonight. He also thanked the audience for supporting them. Then we had the wonderful Gary Avis as Drosselmeyer setting the scene for the glitter fest which was tonight's show as a positive shower fell out of his hat as he picked it up.  

 

Sae Maeda and David Yudes were very refreshing as Clara and the Nutcracker. All the party scenes were played to the hilt by all the dancers. My particular favourites were Hannah Grennell as the Grandmother, who manages to add a great deal of humour to the part and Olivia Cowley as the dance mistress. I did wonder if Christopher Saunders had to make a detour across the stage at one point to check on what the children were doing when playing with the dolls. It was certainly quite lively over in that corner of the stage. 

 

The tree was fully grown from the start, but I expected that. The transformation scene still worked for me, as the music is so wonderful that it carried me anyway. Other scenery still moved so there was movement and that helped. I found I didn't really care too much even though it is one of my favourite scenes when it works fully.  The Clara/ Nutcracker PDD always moves me massively, hence I was a bit of a wreck by the end of Act 1 (in a nice way). 

 

Act 2 brought William Bracewell and Laura Morera to the stage, so what more could one hope for.  Glorious dancing from them was celebrated by prolonged audience applause. I thought Will looked rather serious and fully concentrated with only intermittent smiles while Laura was smiling throughout. They were both very happy at the end though! 

 

David Donnelly worried me in the Arabian dance as he appeared to be finding all the lifts a big effort. One could see his arms shaking with the effort with every lift. Hannah Grennell danced very gracefully but I was worried for her. Thankfully, all went well. 

 

Leticia Dias made a lovely Rose Fairy. I too noticed Melissa Hamilton as she stood out, as did Leo Dixon who now has a tremendous stage presence. 

 

At the final curtain and bows, all the soloists came and threw glitter. What a wonderful end to the Nutcracker run, which has delivered so many such fantastic shows under really difficult circumstances. 

 

Finally, when I first arrived at the ROH, I was browsing in the shop when I saw Matthew Ball and Mayara Magri there, looking at the ballet CDs.  I didn't approach them as that doesn't seem right in these Covid times, I just enjoyed seeing them.  No-one else appeared to notice them at all.  Just an added highlight for my day though.