Royal Ballet - Romeo and Juliet - Winter 2022

[Jan McNulty]

Sorry Dawnstar.  None of the links are working for me.

[Dawnstar]

Oh drat, sorry, it's because I put commas between each link. Unfortunately I can't now edit my post so I've re-posted the links below. ETA I should have also said that some of the Instagram links are to multi-photo posts so the correct doublet isn't always on display at first glance!

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCdYQEYAJof/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZY4GHPgjHn/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CVhuUQKoEJf/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CWK7DnlsIUO/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUsLtWwt6fY/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CY1LKfft0RR/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCVb0vRADcG/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZXY5g9L0Mv/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUDSdOhg_O3/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/royaloperahouse/46791427534

https://www.flickr.com/photos/royaloperahouse/32600319577

 

Edited January 31, 2022 by Dawnstar

[Jan McNulty]

Thanks Dawnstar!

[Dawnstar]

I'm relieved they're now working. If anyone wants to look at all of them & see if they agree with my conclusions on the number of different doublet styles then I'd be interested to know!

[Jan McNulty]

I agree with your findings Dawnstar.  How fascinating.  I suppose costumes have had to be re-made over the years and perhaps could not be reproduced exactly.

 

Thanks for your detective work!

[Odyssey]

I can see this sparking a whole new thread concerning variations to iconic costumes in long standing productions. 

[Dawnstar]

It did make me go & look up what Nureyev wore for the original production. It looks completely different to any of the 3 designs being worn now!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/royaloperahouse/21693651042/in/photostream/

 

[Shade]

Re the production I always find the balcony scene so moving - I think it is my favourite in the ballet.

[Guest oncnp]

Marcelino Sambé on Romeo

 

Break Out Culture with Ed Vaizey: Fashion Designer Osman Yousefzada (countryandtownhouse.co.uk)

[alison]

Thanks, Dawnstar - https://www.instagram.com/p/CY1LKfft0RR/ is the Campbell one.  The colouring looks very different from what I saw on stage, which was rather more of a pale pastelly blue, shading towards grey, I'd have said.  It looked so different from previous versions that I wondered if there'd been some last-minute costume malfunction and someone had simply gone and retrieved one from another ballet which happened to be at hand!  I'd have said the original costumes for the current Sleeping Beauty production, at a guess - the colour palate seemed similar.

[Dawnstar]

@alisonI can only think that perhaps it's something to do with differing lighting? Or human eyes seeing colour differently to cameras? In the only other photo I can find, on Naghdi's Instagram, it looks a similar shade of blue to the photo on Campbell's Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CYvoITVoC3y/

[Nogoat]

 

The last time I saw Osipova's Juliet was June 1st, 2019.

It's a date I remember well as I'd never seen an Act 3 as raw and visceral - made all the more 'real' by the deep bond between her and her dancing soulmate, Hallberg (in fact, we were fortunate enough to speak briefly to Osipova some time later and she told us that she also felt that final act was something 'special').

 

Any concerns I had about her performing with a freshly-minted Romeo were blown away in Act 1 as I, too, was blown away by what was the best Act 1 I'd seen in a long time, and maybe ever.

 

Reece Clarke entered to a mere ripple of applause, but then proceeded to take off as a fully-fledged Romeo; streetwise, flirtatious, full of the bravado of youth at that difficult adolescent transition point between merely playing alpha-male games and suffering or inflicting the real-life consequences of them. 
Clarke's on-stage confidence was reflected in the little embellishments; one I remember was during the initial fight - he was duelling with one of the Capulet foot soldiers, knocked his opponent's sword from his hand, picked it up, disdainfully compared it to his own, longer sword, and threw it back to him to carry on fighting.

 

Osipova's Juliet is, of course, on a parallel journey between her breezy, consequence-free playing at relationships (with her toys, her nurse, even Paris) and the full-blown storm of hormones, emotions and real-life consequences triggered by 'true love'.

And, boy, what a trigger that is; I just love the way Juliet - increasingly bored and disinterested in Paris - switches her attention, instantly and totally, to Romeo - like some apex predator catching sight of its prey and spending the next few, tense, still seconds while its baked-in reflexes, honed over millennia of evolution, evaluate how it's going to seize it and sate itself. 
I think it's one of the great non-dancing moments in ballet.

 

And, of course, the balcony scene is one of the great dancing 'moments' in ballet! 
The Osipova/Hallberg pairing might well have given us the benefits of dancing soulmates, but there were occasions (particularly in the balcony scene, both in the full ballet and the Fonteyn celebration in 2019) when the limits of his physical strength were apparent - and that must have had some impact on the confidence of his partner.

In contrast, Reece Clarke was and is, literally, a tower of strength, and that must have removed any concerns that Osipova had in their duets.

I don't think I've ever seen her dance the balcony scene with such confident abandon; she was able to hand her well-being over to him completely and we were rewarded by her literally flowing around the stage, and in full flood as well. Someone asked during the interval 'Does she have any bones?', and if I'd had my wits about me I could have said 'Yes, they are called Reece and Clarke'.

 

Act 3 did not quite reach the exceptional intensity of her performance in 2019, but it came close - a K2 rather than an Everest, and the descent was still terrifying. Part of the impact of her 2019 performance was the shock of seeing her channel the raw power of primal emotion at an intensity I hadn't seen before (the uncontrollable ecstasy of waking up next to her beloved Romeo, the suffering - no, let's call it what it was, abuse - at the hands of her father, the dark depths of her despair, and the inexorable unfolding of the crypt scene exposing fate at its most vindictive). I knew what to expect (and hoped to expect!) this time and so its impact was slightly diminished.

And speaking of great, non-dancing moments in ballet, the short scene with Juliet sat motionless on the bed, trapped by her predicament, until she thinks of and grasps at that fateful straw and decides to see Friar Laurence, sends shivers down my spine. It's partly the emotion conjured by the incredible music, partly the way the narrative pivots on this tiny decision, and partly the way that narrative shift is relayed by the dancer's face - we cannot help but look, and in looking we see, and in seeing we understand.
 
I fully agree that the orchestra put in a fabulous rendition of the score on Saturday, and it was lovely to see Jonathon Lo appear on stage for the curtain calls and be greeted by very enthusiastic and well-deserved applause!

 

So, Jan 29th, 2022 is another date to add to my list of ones to remember.

 

[Sim]

I am also really enjoying Jonathan Lo’s conducting.  The orchestra sounds lush and beautiful under his guidance, and it’s telling us the story in conjunction with the dancers. 
 

He was a guest on the Open Barre podcast a year or so ago and it was fascinating listening to him discussing what’s it like to conduct ballet, how he interacts with the dancers before and during a performance, etc. The fact that he loves the art form is very apparent.  

[Dawnstar]

The cast list for tonight is up. I seem fated to see Mercutios in multiples like buses! in 2019 I saw Zuchetti twice & Sambe 3 times. Now tonight I'll be seeing Acri for the 3rd time out of the 5 performances I've seen this season. I'm looking forward to seeing Montes guesting as the best-looking Friar Laurence around!

[FionaM]

Leticia Stock has posted that this is Erico’s farewell performance 

[Dawnstar]

I'm glad he's getting one. I was very sorry that he was among the dancers who chose to leave in 2020 when they couldn't have a send-off. Hope they do something for him at tonight's curtain call, as well as whatever they will doubtless do behind the scenes.

[capybara]

7 minutes ago, FionaE said:

Leticia Stock has posted that this is Erico’s farewell performance 

Yes. He missed out, as did others, during the pandemic. Really nice that he has this opportunity.

[Shade]

Thank you Nogoat for your comprehensive analysis. I generally agree but I did find Act 3 on Saturday just as visceral as the Hallberg performance. I recall a real scream in that one though.

 

Did you see the Acosta R&J?

[Dawnstar]

Did anyone else's heart sink when Kevin O'Hare appeared this evening? Fortunately the first thing he said was that there weren't any cast changes! He then said it was Montes' last performance & Bonelli's last Romeo. He also mentioned a former dancer was in the audience this evening. I think he said her name was Rosalind Ayres, but I may have got that wrong as I'm afraid the name wasn't familiar to me.

[bridiem]

6 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

Did anyone else's heart sink when Kevin O'Hare appeared this evening? Fortunately the first thing he said was that there weren't any cast changes! He then said it was Montes' last performance & Bonelli's last Romeo. He also mentioned a former dancer was in the audience this evening. I think he said her name was Rosalind Ayres, but I may have got that wrong as I'm afraid the name wasn't familiar to me.

 

Must be Rosalind Eyre, who was with the company for many years including as a character dancer. Lovely that he mentioned her!

[Dawnstar]

4 minutes ago, bridiem said:

 

Must be Rosalind Eyre, who was with the company for many years including as a character dancer. Lovely that he mentioned her!

 

Thanks for the correct name. He said the Nurse was her final role & she retired in 2002 at a performance when the harlots included Nunez!

[Dawnstar]

It's quite the performance for front-of-curtain speeches: just after the orchestra started playing Act 2 one of the stage management team appeared & said they'd have to re-start due to a technical problem. I can only guess the problem may have been the curtains not opening, as we didn't see the stage.

[Dawnstar]

Thanks to the technical issue, KOH & a longer curtain call for Montes, we didn't get out until nearly quarter to eleven. I've just walked from the ROH to Kings Cross in 20 mins. In an FFP2 facemask. Any spare oxygen would be appreciated!

[Meetmeatthebarre]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

It's quite the performance for front-of-curtain speeches: just after the orchestra started playing Act 2 one of the stage management team appeared & said they'd have to re-start due to a technical problem. I can only guess the problem may have been the curtains not opening, as we didn't see the stage.

 

This happened, from memory, during a Coliseum Osipova/Vassiliev R&J many years ago. One hour later, with technical issues sorted, they appeared onstage supine as if post-coital as the curtain finally lifted, waving at the audience to shoo and give them some privacy. One of the best improvisations I've seen, and led to a roaring cheer from the audience!

Edited February 1, 2022 by Meetmeatthebarre

[Dawnstar]

An hour later?! Blimey, we got off quite lightly tonight by comparison then!

 

I have to say, while it would have been nice for Montes to have had a curtain call speech, for the sake of my getting home I'm relieved that there wasn't one! He did get a bottle, plus a flower from Nunez, & also did the final red run along with Nunez & Bonelli, which I thought was lovely. Bonelli also got a bottle. 

[JennyTaylor]

What a lovely performance this evening, made even more special by the heartfelt farewells at the end. Marianela is so gracious, curtseying and giving both Federico and then Enrico Montes a single flower from her mountain of bouquets They both also received very large bottles of champagne.  They received special applause from the whole cast and then also in front of the red curtain. It was all beautifully done.  

[Sim]

A lovely and emotional evening indeed.  I love Marianela’s fiery, feisty Juliet.  
 

Bonelli bowed out of his Romeo career with a very heartfelt performance that was much appreciated by the audience.  And it was lovely to see Erico Montes given a rose by Marianela and step forward for his well-deserved applause.  I will miss him;  he was always very good at the roles he was given.  Tonight he gave depth and feeling to Friar Laurence. 

[Dawnstar]

I took curtain call photos at tonight's performance but the results range from unsatisfactory to disasterous! As no-one else has posted any yet, I'll post some of mine (in the former category) as I suppose they're better than nothing. If anyone has taken better ones (not difficult) & posts them subsequently then I'll ask the moderators to remove mine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ninamargaret]

Due to my absence from ballet going for some years I had never managed to see Bonelli's Romeo live, although enjoyed it on DVD. So this was my first, and sadly, last time. Needless to say I was not dissapointed. To me, he has always excelled in roles expressing deep emotion and the chemistry between him and Nunez really worked. I felt, for the first time in seeing many R and J's that in the third act she was pleading with him to stay - he was near the point of agreeing until some of sense persuaded him to leave. What beautiful performances from both of them and what a marvellous evening. I do like the way Kevin tends to publicly recognise company members, and not just the principals, leaving. And even the technical glitches couldn't spoil the evening!

[Minniethemoocher]

10 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

Thanks to the technical issue, KOH & a longer curtain call for Montes, we didn't get out until nearly quarter to eleven. I've just walked from the ROH to Kings Cross in 20 mins. In an FFP2 facemask. Any spare oxygen would be appreciated!

This was my latest night at the ROH since March 2020 - I am exhausted today but worth it to see such a marvellous performance

[Lizbie1]

According to Jann Parry's review (see today's links) the Sullivan/Sambe cast had a somewhat unexpected debutant in the role of Paris - Noel Edmonds. Can anyone who was there please report back? 🙂

[Rob S]

8 minutes ago, Lizbie1 said:

According to Jann Parry's review (see today's links) the Sullivan/Sambe cast had a somewhat unexpected debutant in the role of Paris - Noel Edmonds. Can anyone who was there please report back? 🙂

 

From my Stalls Circle side view I could clearly see Mr Blobby being physically restrained in the wings by Tybalt, the Friar and the Nurse when Romeo stabbed Mr Edmonds in the final act. 

[Peanut68]

🤣🤣🤣🤣I needed that laugh - thanks Rob S!!