Royal Ballet's The Nutcracker, Winter 2022/3

[Guest oncnp]

1 minute ago, The red shoes said:

She did indeed look unhappy and appeared to “ mark” or possibly “ limp” through the last few bars of choreography. She looked very sad or unwell… couldn’t work out which. It was my first time seeing them

both live and despite her mishap I thought they were sublime and I cried throughout their first adage 

I thought she had injured herself. 'Hope that's not the case. 

[San Perregrino]

7 hours ago, Amanda Liu said:

Marianela has been ill since earlier this week  The grand pdd, solo and coda were still amazing tonight!

 

In which case, i wonder if it was the right choice for her to go onstage? Dancers can withdraw to protect themselves as Steven McRae has done during this run.  Marianela definitely wasn't her sparkling self last night and, from where i was watching,  seemed lame and out of sorts from after she stumbled. Wishing her no injury and a swift return to full health.

[emmarose]

I saw some of the curtain call videos on Insta and thought Marianela seemed quite emotional.

Let's hope she hasn't injured herself.

[Richard LH]

Joseph Sissens is having a great Nutcracker season...first as Hans Peter in the cinema screened cast, and yesterday debuting as the Prince with Akane Takada as the SPF at the Christmas treat matinee for NHS workers. A lot of love for his debut on his IG posts!

 https://www.instagram.com/p/CmSAIRsoTfG/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Also very pleased that Akane is back is this role having missed out through injury last year😢

Edited December 18, 2022 by Richard LH

[Balletbloke]

Hello everyone - I'm quite new to being a serious ballet lover, and this is my first post here!

Apparently Marianela slipped on some dry ice residue, at least that's what Vadim told me when I just happened to pass him at the stage door, being very politely besieged by some of his teenage fan club!

Although I thought she recovered admirably - it was only a split second after all - it does make you wonder if the use of dry ice in ballet isn't inherently dangerous?

[LinMM]

Gosh I didn’t realise they used actual Dry Ice on the stage! Though not sure how slippy it is ….probably more lethal for pointe shoe wearers though!! 
And welcome to the Forum!!!

[Jorgeb]

The use of a dry ice fog machine is useful in theater and ballet productions that require fog effects.

For example, there are Giselle productions where dry ice is used to create the mist that sets the stage for Willis in Act II. The same goes for Swan Lake productions. It is very common.

In the RB Nutcracker I only remember the use of the smoke effect on the floor at the very beginning of Act II.

I doubt it has anything to do with what happened toward the end of the show.

[Balletbloke]

I'm only going by what Vadim told me. As he was partnering Marianela at the time, I assume he had some idea of what was going on.

I haven't quite got the hang of this yet - this should've been posted as a reply to Jorgeb's post!

Edited December 18, 2022 by Balletbloke

[FionaM]

@Balletbloke you can use the @ function to tag a person you wish to reply to, instead of using the quote function.  Start typing their forum name after the @

[LinMM]

I wonder actually if any residue  dry ice can be sticky rather than slippery which is just as if not more lethal for dancers! You only have to hit a tiny patch of stickiness and it could send you over and very abruptly too! 
Nunez might have wrenched her foot a bit but probably not too serious if she didn’t actually go over.

Im sure the safety of the dancers is pretty much to the fore but occasionally the stage surface might not be at its best!! 

[FionaM]

And dry ice unfortunately condenses on the stage flooring.  I don’t know the mechanics of how they avoid that … must be a specific heat needed to ‘dry’ it? 

[Jan McNulty]

Hello @Balletbloke and welcome to the Forum!

 

The other problem with dry ice is that it is COLD and presumably that could affect dancers' muscles if they are in it for long.  I always wonder that when I see BRB's Swan Lake where the swans at the start of Act 4 are buried in it.

[Jorgeb]

23 minutes ago, Balletbloke said:

I'm only going by what Vadim told me. As he was partnering Marianela at the time, I assume he had some idea of what was going on.

I haven't quite got the hang of this yet - this should've been posted as a reply to Jorgeb's post!

I do not doubt that Vadim gave this explanation. I just have my doubts that it's the right one.

If a dry ice machine is used, the dry ice produces fog in a short period of time - a few seconds - and, instead of making the floor slippery, it sublimates into carbon dioxide. Between the use for a few seconds at the beginning of 2 Act and the end of it, several dancers passed through the stage.

As I said, the use of the fog effect is common in ballet and I don't believe this would be so common if it put the dancers' physical integrity at risk.

And everyone, even the best of the best, like the wonderful Marianella, has unlucky days on stage. They're all human. It's not the first time a dancer has slipped on stage, and it won't be the last. And in no way affects Marianella's great artistic quality which has all my admiration.

[emmarose]

Oh no, poor thing, hopefully it was just something that pulled her up and made her a little tentative for the rest of it, as opposed to an actual injury. Hopefully she's fine for Beauty (which seems to coming around so soon).

 

Another issue with dry ice, as we're on the topic, is for asthmatics. I'm an ex dancer/performer and was in a few productions where it was used and it used to trigger my asthma quite badly. I learnt to hold my breath and keep as far away from it as I could beforehand, so if the stage was pumped with it before the second act curtain rose, I wouldn't go on the stage until the last possible moment.

[bridiem]

There have also been times when dry ice has poured voluminously into the orchestra pit, making me wonder how the musicians can see their music. (Though I think that happens less often now - maybe the musicians complained!).

[Jan McNulty]

15 minutes ago, Jorgeb said:

I do not doubt that Vadim gave this explanation. I just have my doubts that it's the right one.

If a dry ice machine is used, the dry ice produces fog in a short period of time - a few seconds - and, instead of making the floor slippery, it sublimates into carbon dioxide. Between the use for a few seconds at the beginning of 2 Act and the end of it, several dancers passed through the stage.

As I said, the use of the fog effect is common in ballet and I don't believe this would be so common if it put the dancers' physical integrity at risk.

And everyone, even the best of the best, like the wonderful Marianella, has unlucky days on stage. They're all human. It's not the first time a dancer has slipped on stage, and it won't be the last. And in no way affects Marianella's great artistic quality which has all my admiration.

 

To a certain extent I disagree with this.  I think it can be dangerous because of how cold it is - even a few seconds exposure must cause some degree of risk.

 

2 minutes ago, bridiem said:

There have also been times when dry ice has poured voluminously into the orchestra pit, making me wonder how the musicians can see their music. (Though I think that happens less often now - maybe the musicians complained!).

 

Also into the audience BridieM, causing the front row to involuntarily cough and cover their noses and mouths - fortunately this has not been a frequent experience.

[Linnzi5]

2 hours ago, Balletbloke said:

Hello everyone - I'm quite new to being a serious ballet lover, and this is my first post here!

Apparently Marianela slipped on some dry ice residue, at least that's what Vadim told me when I just happened to pass him at the stage door, being very politely besieged by some of his teenage fan club!

Although I thought she recovered admirably - it was only a split second after all - it does make you wonder if the use of dry ice in ballet isn't inherently dangerous?

I hope she is ok. Thanks for the information  

[Dawnstar]

15 hours ago, oncnp said:

Speaking of bouquets...I think Muntagirov's may have been bigger than Nunez's tonight

 

I do hope there aren't competative comparisons of bouquet sizes & that the dancers appreciate the gesture no matter what size bouquet they receive. I'm sure not everyone who wants to give the dancers flowers can afford the £100-ish large bouquets from Bloomsbury Flowers.

 

7 minutes ago, bridiem said:

There have also been times when dry ice has poured voluminously into the orchestra pit, making me wonder how the musicians can see their music. (Though I think that happens less often now - maybe the musicians complained!).

 

I noticed it happening at the first 2 performances of this run, with it coming offstage & onto those musicians who are sat at the back of the pit, though fortunately their wasn't so much as to affect those further forward in the pit. I can only assume that the musicians who sit at the back have learnt the music for the first few minutes of Act II by heart!

Edited December 18, 2022 by Dawnstar

[capybara]

25 minutes ago, bridiem said:

There have also been times when dry ice has poured voluminously into the orchestra pit, making me wonder how the musicians can see their music. (Though I think that happens less often now - maybe the musicians complained!).

The double bass players were ‘dry-iced’ comprehensively last night. They just kept on playing/plucking as usual.

 

As for the Stage Door and comments about little mishaps which do not matter a jot (unless a dancer is hurt), I have seen/heard the dancers themselves be, dare I say, accosted with “what happened” enquiries the minute they come through the glass door - with no reference to the glory of their performance as a whole. They will be hurting from every minor error enough by themselves without anyone rubbing it in. (Not that I’m suggesting that @Balletbloke did in this instance.)

[Jorgeb]

44 minutes ago, Jan McNulty said:

 

To a certain extent I disagree with this.  I think it can be dangerous because of how cold it is - even a few seconds exposure must cause some degree of risk.

 

 

Also into the audience BridieM, causing the front row to involuntarily cough and cover their noses and mouths - fortunately this has not been a frequent experience.

Dry ice is extremely cold - approximately -78 degrees C (-109 F).

But when used to produce fog in theatrical or ballet productions, the fog produced doesn't have that temperature – which would be terrible for physical integrity.

In any case, it produces a cooling of the temperature and perhaps someone with experience as a dancer can inform us about this issue.

[Jan McNulty]

2 minutes ago, Jorgeb said:

Dry ice is extremely cold - approximately -78 degrees C (-109 F).

But when used to produce fog in theatrical or ballet productions, the fog produced doesn't have that temperature – which would be terrible for physical integrity.

In any case, it produces a cooling of the temperature and perhaps someone with experience as a dancer can inform us about this issue.

 

I have no experience as a dancer but I was at a backstage tour in Plymouth some years ago when the BRB dry ice machine was demonstrated.  It was COLD!

 

@emmarose gave an example of the effects of dry ice higher up the thread.

[The red shoes]

3 hours ago, Balletbloke said:

Hello everyone - I'm quite new to being a serious ballet lover, and this is my first post here!

Apparently Marianela slipped on some dry ice residue, at least that's what Vadim told me when I just happened to pass him at the stage door, being very politely besieged by some of his teenage fan club!

Although I thought she recovered admirably - it was only a split second after all - it does make you wonder if the use of dry ice in ballet isn't inherently dangerous?

This makes sense then as James Large appeared to slip/ stumble as he ran on at the start of act two in the same place Marianella slipped. 

[Balletbloke]

@capybara point taken! I did first off say how much I'd loved their performance - in fact it made me quite emotional! Mention of the slip just came up in passing.

Edited December 18, 2022 by Balletbloke

[capybara]

On 13/12/2022 at 13:13, The Sitter In said:

Oliver Symons.  Used to do Widow Simone etc.

 

.......was not on stage last night (17th Dec.). Daichi Ikarashi, who took over the role during the pandemic was back 'on duty'!!!

[JennyTaylor]

I attended the  performance last night with my step grand-daughters (10 and 8) who were incredibly excited by the whole thing. They had been once before lockdown but a gap of 3 years made this even more special. I have to confess to being thrilled that Gary Avis was performing plus of course, we had the added bonus of Marianela and Vadim. This was the rare occasion that I booked for the date, rather than the cast so I felt that I had hit the jackpot.   As the Christmas tree grew they were both sat forward in their seats, with their mouths open. This is what dreams are made of. 

 

Having now seen 3 * Principal pairings perform the Grand pdd this time round, I'm now curious that Will Bracewell changed the variation in the 2nd part of the pdd.  I found this very powerful, and having seen it 3 times (rehearsal, cinema and live), it brought the house down each time, along with the entire fantastic performances by Will and Fumi.  I was slightly startled when I didn't see the same thing with Matthew Ball and Yasmine Naghdi and I expected something different from Vadim, which I didn't really get. All 3 couples were superb, of course but I'm curious to know what everyone else thinks.  During the cinema interview, Will mentioned that Darcey Bussell (their coach) had allowed them to change it.  Personally, I like variations to play to each dancers strengths , such as we saw in Swan Lake Act 3 recently, without radical changes of course.   

 

 

[capybara]

21 minutes ago, JennyTaylor said:

I attended the  performance last night with my step grand-daughters (10 and 😎 who were incredibly excited by the whole thing. They had been once before lockdown but a gap of 3 years made this even more special. I have to confess to being thrilled that Gary Avis was performing plus of course, we had the added bonus of Marianela and Vadim. This was the rare occasion that I booked for the date, rather than the cast so I felt that I had hit the jackpot.   As the Christmas tree grew they were both sat forward in their seats, with their mouths open. This is what dreams are made of. 

 

Having now seen 3 * Principal pairings perform the Grand pdd this time round, I'm now curious that Will Bracewell changed the variation in the 2nd part of the pdd.  I found this very powerful, and having seen it 3 times (rehearsal, cinema and live), it brought the house down each time, along with the entire fantastic performances by Will and Fumi.  I was slightly startled when I didn't see the same thing with Matthew Ball and Yasmine Naghdi and I expected something different from Vadim, which I didn't really get. All 3 couples were superb, of course but I'm curious to know what everyone else thinks.  During the cinema interview, Will mentioned that Darcey Bussell (their coach) had allowed them to change it.  Personally, I like variations to play to each dancers strengths , such as we saw in Swan Lake Act 3 recently, without radical changes of course.   

 

 

 

This in interesting, Jenny.

Sometimes variations get changed to 'show off' a particular dancer’s technique; sometimes because they can't quite manage the demands of the 'original'; sometimes a bit of both!

I wonder what the reason was in the case of the lovely Will Bracewell?

 

 

Edited December 18, 2022 by capybara

[JennyTaylor]

11 minutes ago, capybara said:

 

This in interesting, Jenny.

Sometimes variations get changed to 'show off' a particular dancer’s technique; sometimes because they can't quite manage the demands of the 'original'; sometimes a bit of both!

I wonder what the reason was in the case of the lovely Will Bracewell?

 

11 minutes ago, capybara said:

 

I think it's a bit of both. He's perfectly capable of doing the leaps round the stage as exhibited by Matt and Vadim, in unison with their Sugar Plum Fairies.  However, he inserted his fast turns (also used in Act 3 Swan Lake) which worked really well. In Swan Lake of course, Vadim has his amazing triple jumps which are astounding and breathtaking).  But nothing really like that yesterday, though he was perfection in everything he did. 

 

 

Edited December 18, 2022 by JennyTaylor
added content

[Dawnstar]

56 minutes ago, JennyTaylor said:

Personally, I like variations to play to each dancers strengths , such as we saw in Swan Lake Act 3 recently, without radical changes of course.  

 

I'm now trying & failing to rememeber what differences there were between Siegfrieds in SL. I can remember some Odlie differences, due to fouettes issues, but can't remember how the men differed - if indeed I even noticed that they did! (I do remember differences between the Albrechts in Giselle last year & preferred Bonelli's continuation of the entrechats six to the other option.) Also I find Muntagirov looks different even if he does the same variation as other dancers because he does the manege the other way around the stage.

[alison]

11 hours ago, Balletbloke said:

Hello everyone - I'm quite new to being a serious ballet lover, and this is my first post here!

Apparently Marianela slipped on some dry ice residue, at least that's what Vadim told me when I just happened to pass him at the stage door, being very politely besieged by some of his teenage fan club!

Although I thought she recovered admirably - it was only a split second after all - it does make you wonder if the use of dry ice in ballet isn't inherently dangerous?

 

It certainly can be.  Forum members who went to Hammersmith during the ROH closure at the end of last century may remeber that Nicola Tranah, dancing Myrtha, had a very nasty slip on dry ice in the first night of Giselle.  She landed on her back, if I recall correctly.

[Jorgeb]

2 hours ago, alison said:

 

It certainly can be.  Forum members who went to Hammersmith during the ROH closure at the end of last century may remeber that Nicola Tranah, dancing Myrtha, had a very nasty slip on dry ice in the first night of Giselle.  She landed on her back, if I recall correctly.

 

A modern dry ice machine should not cause any condensation, leave any oil residue, or make the stage floor wet and slippery dangerous.

However, there are cases where accidents occurred during the production of the fog, as mentioned by Donald Thom, a former dancer of The Royal Ballet who currently dances with the National Ballet of Canada. In an interview, he says that his worst moment of embarrassment on stage was slipping about 5 meters wrapped in smoke with one leg stuck up in a set piece.

Inadequate technology to produce the fog or some excess I suppose.

What intrigues me is whether the drop in temperature affects ballet dancers, knowing that warming up the muscles is so important, but that`s not the subject of this thread.

[Linnzi5]

10 hours ago, JennyTaylor said:

I attended the  performance last night with my step grand-daughters (10 and 😎 who were incredibly excited by the whole thing. They had been once before lockdown but a gap of 3 years made this even more special. I have to confess to being thrilled that Gary Avis was performing plus of course, we had the added bonus of Marianela and Vadim. This was the rare occasion that I booked for the date, rather than the cast so I felt that I had hit the jackpot.   As the Christmas tree grew they were both sat forward in their seats, with their mouths open. This is what dreams are made of. 

 

Having now seen 3 * Principal pairings perform the Grand pdd this time round, I'm now curious that Will Bracewell changed the variation in the 2nd part of the pdd.  I found this very powerful, and having seen it 3 times (rehearsal, cinema and live), it brought the house down each time, along with the entire fantastic performances by Will and Fumi.  I was slightly startled when I didn't see the same thing with Matthew Ball and Yasmine Naghdi and I expected something different from Vadim, which I didn't really get. All 3 couples were superb, of course but I'm curious to know what everyone else thinks.  During the cinema interview, Will mentioned that Darcey Bussell (their coach) had allowed them to change it.  Personally, I like variations to play to each dancers strengths , such as we saw in Swan Lake Act 3 recently, without radical changes of course.   

 

 

 

Glad you enjoyed Will and Fumi and the performances you saw - I loved the one I saw too, it was just so beautiful! 

 

I wonder if you are talking about the end of the Coda? The bit where some dancers go round the stage in opposite directions and jump occasionally?  Will Bracewell did turns in the centre and Fumi danced around him? If so, this is an alternative variation I have seen used before. In fact, Federico Bonelli did this in the 2016 production that is on dvd with Lauren Cuthbertson,  If it's not this one, is there another difference I missed? Wouldn't surprise me if I did as I was rather spellbound! 

[capybara]

11 hours ago, capybara said:

 

This in interesting, Jenny.

Sometimes variations get changed to 'show off' a particular dancer’s technique; sometimes because they can't quite manage the demands of the 'original'; sometimes a bit of both!

I wonder what the reason was in the case of the lovely Will Bracewell?

 

 

 

 Apologies for quoting myself but there is another reason for variations to get changed - and that is if a dancer needs to protect a slight strain. For example, a man might do barrel rolls in place of a 'normal' manege.

 

 

[JennyTaylor]

I wonder if you are talking about the end of the Coda? The bit where some dancers go round the stage in opposite directions and jump occasionally?  Will Bracewell did turns in the centre and Fumi danced around him? If so, this is an alternative variation I have seen used before. In fact, Federico Bonelli did this in the 2016 production that is on dvd with Lauren Cuthbertson,  If it's not this one, is there another difference I missed? Wouldn't surprise me if I did as I was rather spellbound! 

 

Yes, this is exactly the moment. I loved seeing Will do this, so I was sitting and waiting for Matt Ball to do the same - and he didn't. Neither Vadim. They both did the other version. I was just so surprised I wondered what was happening. Both versions are absolutely fine of course, just wanted to make the observation.   

 

Edited December 19, 2022 by JennyTaylor
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