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Royal Ballet 5 May 2022 Ukraine benefit 🇺🇦 : Unique Swan Lake featuring Ball, Cuthbertson, Lamb, Bracewell, Nuñez, Muntagirov, Osipova, Clarke

Emeralds
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Emeralds

Emeralds

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I thought I would do a separate thread for this unusual Swan Lake performance given the unusual casting and the fact that the Swan Lake thread is already very long to scroll through if someone wanted to read just about this fundraiser. Had to resist the temptation to put the Benno casting in the title (Jun and Acri will be the evening’s Bennos) given the forum’s interest in the casting of this role every season that this production is scheduled. 😊

 

Toi toi toi to all the artists and crew for tonight’s show (or should that be toi toi toi toi toi toi) and members who are going, do let us know how it looked, how it all went, and what you thought! Curtain call pictures eagerly anticipated with great curiosity. 😁

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bridiem

bridiem

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1 hour ago, Emeralds said:

https://static.roh.org.uk/digital/cast-sheets/Swan-lake/5.5.22-Swan-Lake-Ukraine-gala-v4.pdf

 

Cast list for the show ^^

 

PS just noticed that the cast list (currently) says the show is on Wed 5 May 7.30pm when in fact it is of course Thursday today. 😉 (5 May is correct, just in case any ticket holders thought they’ve missed it.) 

 

Thanks Emeralds - I hadn't noticed that. I've just mentioned it to an usher since it does need to be changed especially for (ROH) archive purposes.

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Dawnstar

Dawnstar

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The Act II Odette division was Cuthbertson up to the end of the pas de deux then Lamb for the solo & to the end. I'm not very good at prologue recognition but it looked to me like Cuthbertson did that & possibly Avis as Von Rothbart, though I'm uncertain of that.

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Emeralds

Emeralds

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I must admit I can never identify who is who in that prologue scene, nor do I try, haha.....I just hope they look alike enough so that I don’t instinctively think, okay, there are definitely  four different characters in that scene!

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Sim

Sim

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What a wonderful evening, preceded by a hard-hitting speech by Alex Beard.  
 

I thought the role sharing worked very well, and the changes were seamless and flowed beautifully.  Everyone was on top form.  Bravo to all involved…and thanks!  

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bridiem

bridiem

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What an amazing experience that was. I am overcome with admiration for the way these dancers performed sections of the ballet with as much passion, commitment and involvement as if they were performing the whole work. And as each pairing gave way to the next, the sense of loss was replaced by the thrill of the next couple. Inevitably, the personal dramatic progression was lost; but I found by the end that it had been replaced by the cosmic drama that is Swan Lake. Ultimately, it didn't matter who danced Siegfried, or Odette, or Odile, or Von Rothbart - because they were all participants in telling the same story, a story that conveys truths relevant to all people everywhere and in every era. The themes are universal: the lust for power; love; loss; deception; evil; corruption; self-sacrifice; weakness; grief; cruelty; death; goodness; purity. And all the dancers tonight conveyed these themes with the utmost conviction, so producing a kind of performance for the ages. 

 

AND the standard of dancing was sensational throughout the company. It would be invidious to mention individuals because they were all brilliant. Incredible talent, skill and artistry everywhere. A memorable evening.

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capybara

capybara

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Beautifully put, bridiem.

 

I can’t explain why but the whole was somehow more moving than many normal performances I’ve seen. 

The sense of anticipation in the audience as each new dancer took the stage was extraordinary. It was a cast to die for. Huge kudos to them all and to Kevin O’Hare for having the idea and bringing it to glorious fruition.

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JennyTaylor

JennyTaylor

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WOW, WOW, WOW! It was one of those nights when I just felt "I'm so lucky and privileged to be here".  3 Odettes/ 1 Odile * 4 Siegfrieds, 2 Benno's and 2 von Rothbarts, 2 Queens and 2 * Siegfried's sisters.  It was amazing and so seamless. Everyone gave their all and the entire theatre gave them a standing ovation at the end. 

 

Where to start. Marianela and Vadim were on fire in Act 3 - absolutely phenomenal. Natalia Osipova and Reece Clarke - utterly heart breaking in Act 4.   Matthew Ball, an anguished prince in Act 1, and Will Bracewell partnering both Lauren Cuthbertson and Sarah Lamb in a beautiful Act 2. 

 

Joonhyuk Jun almost stole the show with his Benno solo in Act 1 - the height he achieved with his leaps was astonishing. 

 

A wonderful double act between Ben Gartside and Gary Avis as Von R.  They were both at their dramatic best. All gestures seemed to be emphasised this evening - and such energy. 

 

What an experience.  Once in a lifetime I suspect.    

 

 

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Rob S

Rob S

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I hate it when standing ovations, low ceilings and people spaced too far apart all happen on the same evening. 

 

 

 

 

 

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Emeralds

Emeralds

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Thank you to everyone for your reviews, reports and contributions!

 

Thank you for the brilliant pictures, RobS- wonderful to see the stage bows with the swan ladies and musicians, as well as the red run pictures. What fun to see both Bennos together too! Thank you for sharing your snaps, Silke H- the different expressions and reactions from the dancers are brilliant.

 

If my eyes haven’t deceived me, I think I spotted the Marianna Tsembenhoi, the company’s Ukrainian Aud Jebsen artist, in the swan ensemble, in the second from right column of swans in the photos. Anyone else saw her (either on stage or in the photos)? I’m not 100% sure.

 

Really impressed by how the Royal Ballet dancers, coaches and Kevin O’Hare have taken this uncommon idea and made it a huge success.

 

If anyone remembers what some or all of what Alex Beard said or covered in his speech, I’d be interested to read it. Did Kevin O’Hare give a speech too? 

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bridiem

bridiem

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3 minutes ago, Emeralds said:

If anyone remembers what some or all of what Alex Beard said or covered in his speech, I’d be interested to read it. Did Kevin O’Hare give a speech too? 

 

No, just Alex Beard. To paraphrase what I remember (others will remember more): he referred several times to the ROH being horrified by the unprovoked attack on Ukraine and the resultant suffering; that the bravery and resolve of the response of the Ukrainian people has been truly humbling; and that performing this great work by Tchaikovsky, who was of Polish and Ukrainian heritage, and involving performers from many countries, is the ROH's response to Putin's narrow and distorted view of nationalism. He spat out the last words, and spoke with fervour throughout. Followed by the Ukrainian national anthem. Extremely moving.

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San Perregrino

San Perregrino

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prefaced by a strong message of support for Ukraine by Alex Beard, then the Ukrainian National Anthem and on a stage framed by the blue & yellow of the Ukrainian flag, we were treated to a priceless night of total ballet bliss.  such was the magic of the evening, at one point it seemed to me that the number of swans rippling on stage had also doubled.

every single person on stage was at the top of their game, superlative, superlative and more superlatives.

thank you

 

ps as i walked across Waterloo Bridge after the show, i saw that not only was the Southbank Centre lit as it has been for weeks in blue and yellow, but also the London Eye, the National Theatre and even the OXO tower were lit in blue and yellow. 

Edited by PeterS
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ctas

ctas

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Marianna has really been eye-catching this season, her peasant girl mime interaction with Giselle earlier this year was very charmingly done and I enjoyed seeing her small moment with the prince last night. 
 

Had an amazing night last night, all the changes were seamless and danced to perfection. I’ve not seen Sarah Lamb as Odette/Odile before but after the small bit we got last night I’m going to have to try see her perform it as she was a real highlight. Marianela Nuñez was her usual perfection, I was hoping she’d get Act 3! I hope they raised a lot of money as it was an impressive show!

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Rob S

Rob S

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2 minutes ago, Swan said:

I would have loved to have seen it, does anyone know if the performance was filmed?

 

Certainly not with the cameras that they put in place for cinema screenings....just the static camera above the Stalls Circle

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Sim

Sim

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I must say I am surprised that they did not film this for live streaming. I am sure they could have made a lot of money for the DEC from showing it as pay-per-view, streaming, etc. I for one would definitely have paid to see it again.  

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Guest oncnp

Guest oncnp

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10 minutes ago, Sim said:

I must say I am surprised that they did not film this for live streaming. I am sure they could have made a lot of money for the DEC from showing it as pay-per-view, streaming, etc. I for one would definitely have paid to see it again.  

 

Based on Kevin O'Hare's previous comments about streaming being "very expensive" (if I remember correctly) , I'm not sure how many views they would need to break even, let alone generate a profit for the charity. I doubt the ROH is in a position to donate the streaming costs. The donation for last night will be the "net proceeds", net of what unspecified. I wonder if the ROH will announce the amount at any point. 

 

And apropos of nothing...my favorite comment from last night's performance  was the gentleman, when asked about the various Siegfried's, saying he "liked the tall, skinny one". So much for fame.  

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