Royal Ballet Cinderella March/April 2023

[zxDaveM]

8 minutes ago, rosefairy said:

anyone at tonight's performance and would accompany me to stage door afterwards?☺️ 

To be honest, I don't even quite know where it is😅

 

If you come out of the House from the front door (into Bow Street), turn left, then immediately left again into Floral Street, and walk along the side of ROH. The stage door is 75-100m along (you pass under the Bridge of Dreams from the school into ROH, as you go along). I dare say there will be a small gathering outside (and inside the 'foyer' bit if you're bold) there to join in with

[bangorballetboy]

7 minutes ago, zxDaveM said:

the Bridge of Dreams

 

Bridge of Aspiration...

[zxDaveM]

Just now, bangorballetboy said:

 

Bridge of Aspiration...

 

I knew I'd got the terminology wrong, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was (should have just left it out!! lol)

[bangorballetboy]

1 minute ago, zxDaveM said:

 

I knew I'd got the terminology wrong, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was (should have just left it out!! lol)

 I now have "River of Dreams" as an earworm...

[Sim]

I actually prefer Bridge of Dreams! 

 

[Guest oncnp]

or "Bridge of Perspiration" as the Upper School students are reported to call it

[Benjamin]

1 minute ago, oncnp said:

or "Bridge of Perspiration" as the Upper School students are reported to call it

I love it!

[capybara]

1 hour ago, rosefairy said:

Fairly last minute to be fair, but is anyone at tonight's performance and would accompany me to stage door afterwards?☺️ 

I've been to the ROH only once during Covid, so stage door was closed at the time. To be honest, I don't even quite know where it is😅 I have been to the one in Vienna though, so could help with that in return  

The instructions above should get you there but don’t be shy about going inside or about talking to the dancers. Sometimes it can take around 45 mins for the leads to come out but they are always very willing to stop.

[Dawnstar]

@rosefairy One more tip on going to the stage door: there's not much room to wait inside so I'd advise heading there as quickly as possible after tonight's performance because it's forecast to be heavy rain tonight so it'll be pretty miserable if you have to wait outside.

I'm sorry I can't volunteer to accompany you, as I'll be at today's performance, but I'm afraid I'll have to head off to get my train as soon as the performance finishes. I have to restrict my stage dooring to matinees or shorter ballets.

[Fonty]

18 hours ago, Scheherezade said:

 

 

 

And at least three of us shared the same thoughts about the poor child in the yellow costume. A dandelion? Me neither...

 

Ah yes, now you have jogged my memory I did read that, but didn't really register who was wearing it.   When people make comments about a new production that I haven't personally seen, sometimes it is difficult to remember the context.  Humpty Dumpty is a very good way of describing it!

[AnneL]

On 03/04/2023 at 19:37, Missfrankiecat said:

 

What lovely excitement!  I forgot to say what a pleasure it was during the intervals and after last Saturday's matinee to see and hear so many little girls (and quite a few boys) so enthralled with the experience.  Ballet is such a wonderful vehicle for endlessly entertaining and entrancing all ages and this is a lovely production for family viewing.

This is so true. I think part of the reason I looked forward to this new production so much was because I saw Ashton’s Cinderella as a child, over 50 years ago. The memory has never faded nor the excitement. I hope some of the children seeing it during this school holiday will become lifelong fans, just as I did, with years of pleasure watching dance ahead of them. 

[Dawnstar]

Having just seen Act 1 for the first time, I'm impressed by those of you who have been able to make detailed comments on the production after a single viewing. I think it'll take me several viewings to fully assimilate everything. There's a lot going on visually! 

[Richard LH]

Wow this is wonderful.. loving it 😍 !

[Guest oncnp]

a little more on the sets

 

Watch Royal Opera House | Visitors' Book | THE WORLD OF INTERIORS

[Ianlond]

How wonderful to hear again this score that I love & see some of Ashton’s choreography back on stage!

However…the fairy attendants (the children) really look ridiculous, & are completely unnecessary - especially in Act 2 when they badly clutter & distract. Get rid of them completely (it may also allow greater space for the 4 season fairies to dance their solos in Act 1. Melissa Hamilton looked particularly cramped). Fumi Kaneko had a slip in her solo but otherwise made as much as possible of it, while I very much enjoyed Anna Rose O’Sullivan as spring once I ignored the dandelion! Joseph Sissens a standout as one of the prince’s friends (who don’t really interact very much with him).
The production certainly looks like a ‘show’. Perhaps too much? 

I agree with whoever posted before about the fairy costumes in Act 1 being replaced by those from the rest of the ballet (as appears to be the case in the Dowell/ Sibley snippets online?) although I actually quite like the bright colours. Summer however is way, way over decorated. I would also like to take some scissors to Cinderella’s bow in the ballroom scene! 
Having seen the previous production, was more impressed with the step-sisters this time as their roles do seem to have been toned down; however, the start of Act 2 still drags somewhat. 
Nunez was delightful & poised throughout but I wasn’t especially moved - will be interested to see other casts in the run. 
There were a lot of happy sounding children tonight & I can see this being a hit at Christmas with families so hopefully will stay in the rep more permanently. 

Edited April 5, 2023 by Ianlond

[JennyTaylor]

I Ioved tonight’s performance. It made me extremely happy. That’s all I ask for really.

[Sophoife]

8 hours ago, AnneL said:

This is so true. I think part of the reason I looked forward to this new production so much was because I saw Ashton’s Cinderella as a child, over 50 years ago. The memory has never faded nor the excitement. I hope some of the children seeing it during this school holiday will become lifelong fans, just as I did, with years of pleasure watching dance ahead of them. 

 

What she said.

 

I'm about three weeks away from my first Royal Ballet performance of this Ashton ballet since 1969. I've seen it in between but not from this company.

[Richard LH]

Having now seen the new production, I am slightly baffled by some of the less than effusive reviews on this forum! Here’s why…

 

I really love all the costumes – colourful, bright, fresh and well-suited to their respective characters. I didn’t have any issue with the fairy attendants (and wouldn’t have particularly noticed them but for the comments on this forum).

 

The scenery is superb, and the staging is brilliant and just magical, especially at the ends of each Act, marvellously enhanced by the starry lighting, some cleverly expanding scenery,  and various other visual tricks. It will be  interesting to see how it comes across in the cinema, but I suspect that you need to be in the auditorium to really appreciate it – there is so much going on.

 

Whereas I haven’t been able to warm to earlier recorded iterations of the sisters, with their grotesque rubbery facial make up and unfunny antics, the Avis/Acri pairing actually gave me  several chuckles…it does help to be familiar with these two dancers in their more usual roles , as has been mentioned. They managed to add character, and even a little pathos,  to the sisters rather than simply playing them as caricatures and  it was nice to see them finally acknowledging Cinderella as princess-in-waiting at the end. With several tweaks improving the “gags”,  their contribution to the evening was not wholly unwelcome and  was certainly well received by the majority of the audience!

 

Marianela Nunez was on consummate form and must be regarded as the go-to standard for technical excellence just at the moment. I sat next to a couple of ladies visiting from the States who are great Nela fans and were visibly moved at end after her ascent into the showery  golden  realm. Of course she was so well assisted by the magnificent Muntagirov in his most princely of modes!

 

The role of Fairy Godmother in disguise has been enhanced, and Olga Sabadoch provides a more interesting, rounded interaction with Cinderella’s disfunctional family. Transformed into the lovely Fumi Kaneko, the Fairy Godmother takes on her true shape.  Fumi excelled in the role  (it must have been a bit of left-over orange peel that caused her a slight slip at one point) and I am now very much looking forward to seeing her own interpretation of Cinders, along with that of Akane Takada (fingers very much crossed for her).  

 

Finally Ashton’s choreography – superb, unique and  designed perfectly to be in step with Prokofiev’s inventive, dramatic music, which was colourfully executed under the baton of Koen Kessels. Act 2 in particular looks wonderful, with its  sections of  non-stop, interchanging ballroom dancing, where the corps look  resplendent and on top form. Cinderella’s dreamlike arrival at the ball must be one of the most spellbinding entrances in ballet – not to be missed. The dancing and music  builds up to an electrifying  level at the end of Acts 1 and 2, and at the end of Act 3, becomes hopelessly, and beautifully  romantic.

 

A wonderful return to the stage for this work, and fully deserving its billing. It would be a super Christmas treat anytime soon!

[LinMM]

Love your review Richard LH! 

[Missfrankiecat]

20 minutes ago, LinMM said:

Love your review Richard LH! 

 

Me too.  Brought back happy memories from last Saturday and I am looking forward to the livestream cinema 'performance' next week already.

[alison]

48 minutes ago, Richard LH said:

The scenery is superb, and the staging is brilliant and just magical, especially at the ends of each Act, marvellously enhanced by the starry lighting, some cleverly expanding scenery,  and various other visual tricks. It will be  interesting to see how it comes across in the cinema, but I suspect that you need to be in the auditorium to really appreciate it – there is so much going on.

 

No.  You really need to be in those parts of the auditorium which have a full view of the proscenium arch and rear of the stage to fully appreciate it.  Unfortunately, I've booked stalls circle standing I think for all my performances, and so will have to put up with a distinctly limited view.  Hence (partly) why I'm going to the cinema so I can actually see the whole thing.

[San Perregrino]

1 hour ago, alison said:

 

No.  You really need to be in those parts of the auditorium which have a full view of the proscenium arch and rear of the stage to fully appreciate it.  Unfortunately, I've booked stalls circle standing I think for all my performances, and so will have to put up with a distinctly limited view.  Hence (partly) why I'm going to the cinema so I can actually see the whole thing.

It will be interesting to see if the projections around the proscenium arch are shown in the cinema relay. I was standing behind a cameraman located adjacent to the sound box last night who mixed closeups, and mid shots. When he did pan out, it was to encompass the width of the stage but not what was happening at the sides nor above. Perhaps another camera was delegated responsibility for an even wider shot. 

[Fonty]

What do they look like from other parts of the theatre?  Do they come across well from the amphitheatre, for example?

[Mary]

I thought the projections looked good from the front of the amphi.

One reason I like sitting there is the view of the whole theatre.

 

[Benjamin]

Here are my thoughts on Cinderella. Fredrick Ashton’s Cinderella was premiered 75 years ago, but we are using complete new designs made this year, sets with materials and concepts that weren’t imaginable 75 years ago, same with the costumes. Projections that have only been widely used in Theatre for Less than 30 years, these designs are new, but the production isn’t, they can’t change anything. I don’t see why the don’t use the original designs, they may be dated but Fredrick Ashton approved them, probably made changes of the choreography to cater for them but they can’t do that here, It’s a grey area and I hope that they realise that not everything needs to be redone.

[Dawnstar]

(Apologies, this has ended up much longer than I thought it would be when I started typing. I've included some curtain call photos to break up the text a bit & don't expect many - any?! - people to read it all!)

 

I'd like to start my comments by thanking @oncnp whose generosity with a spare ticket meant I was able to see Cinderella for the first time from a fabulous full-view seat. With the prices being so high for Cinderella I thought I was going to have to try to piece it together from a succession of restricted viewings. I think it does make such a difference to be able to see everything for the first time seeing a piece. Mind you, there was so much going on much of the time that I felt I needed several pairs of eyes to be able to really take in everything!

 

Going by order of creation, I found I liked the music more than the first time I heard the score at ENB's Wheeldon Cinderella in 2019. So I hope it will continue to grow on me. While some ballet scores I have immediately loved (R&J, Manon) others have take me a few listenings to fully appreciate (Mayerling, Onegin).

 

I thought the choreography was consistently attractive & graceful - well, apart from the Stepsisters' but that's deliberate! As I have no technical knowledge of ballet, I thought I could see some typical Fonteyn style in Act I but I can't say I would have realised Act II was then choreographed on another dancer if I hadn't already heard about it. It felt it could have equally been due to the difference in Cinderella dancing in private & in public.

 

There were a couple of narrative points that I didn't quite get. I'm not sure if that's due to me missing things, the original choreography, or this particular production.

- It didn't seem to be obvious in Act I that the Stepsisters had been invited to a ball & Cinderella hadn't. They were evidently getting ready to go out somewhere but it didn't seem to be indicated where.

- Is the ball specifically for the Prince to choose a bride, as it is in many versions of the Cinderella story, or is it just fortunate that the Prince happens to be single & falls in love with Cinderella? There don't seem to be any other girls trying to attract his attention & even the Stepsisters seem more interested in quarrelling over the better-looking of their 2 suitors than over the Prince.

- I think someone commented somewhere upthread, or perhaps it was in one of the reviews, that the Prince searching in Act III has been cut? He seemed to arrive only minutes after the Stepsisters got home from the ball! Have previous productions tried to indicate a longer passage of time at this point?

- And a more minor Act III point: the Dressmakers, Dancing Master, Hairdresser, Jeweller & Shoemaker are presumably visitors to the house rather than live-in servants, so how come they all reappear in what is presumably the middle of the night to start undressing the Stepsisters?!

 

Overall I liked the production, bearing in mind I have no other productions to compare it to. Perhaps at times it was a little too bright but that might have been partly because I was seeing it close up & it has to reach to the back of the amphitheatre. I thought the sets were attractive. The Act II palace exterior reminded me strongly of Waddesdon Manor, though I imagine that's because Waddesdon was built in the style of a French chateau & the set designer was copying French chateaus rather than the set designer copying Waddesdon specifically (Waddesdon, if anyone's interested https://postimg.cc/212Sf1Yk ).

 

Most of the costumes I liked, especially the corps de ballet's Act II ballgowns (it's perhaps unsurprising those were my favourites as they're very 1950s style & the New Look is for me the peak of fashion). The Fairies' dresses & tutus are pretty bright but I liked the colours. There have been a number of comments about the Prince's Friends' tights having stripes down the side but I was surprised that the stripes were only on the thighs & not right down the legs (like Rudolf's in Mayerling). I think it would have looked better with no stripes at all rather than abbreviated ones. I agree with the previous comments on the Fairy attendants' costumes. I too would have put the fluffy yellow Spring one down as a chick rather than a dandelion! I'm afraid I could have happily done without the attendants at all as I found they distracted from the Fairies without adding anything (and the RB could have probably saved a few thousands on the costume budget without them). Oh and one costume that slightly puzzled me was Cinderella's tutu, which I thought was gorgeous overall but where the skirt met the bodice at the sides there seemed to be narrow bits visible that weren't the same shade of white as the rest. It could have just been a trick of the light or my eyes though. Some of the hairstyles were quite something. It felt as though the ticket price rises might have been just to cover the wig & hairspray budget!

 

Considering the advanced publicity about there being a magic consultant, I was surprised at how little stage magic there seems to be. The switches for the Fairy Godmother in Act I & Cinderella in Act II were fairly visible, as was that of the prop pumpkin for the carriage. I assume selective camera shots will hide them a bit more for the cinecast. Did I blink & miss any other magic?

 

I thought all the cast danced very well. Even though I've seen Nunez & Muntagirov live a number of times in the last 5 years, during their Act II pdd I still had one of those oh-goodness-2-of-the-best-dancers-in-the-world-are-right-in-front-of-me moments! It is interesting having it the other way around with the pdd after the solos. I wish the Prince had had a longer solo, including a manege - but Prokofiev in the 1940s couldn't know that I'd want to see more of Muntagirov in the 2020s! He was, as always, a perfect prince. I'm not sure Nunez made Cinderella quite pathetic enough in Act I, perhaps because she's so naturally buoyant & sunny on stage, so she didn't really seem unhappy with her lot apart from missing her mother, but other than that I thought she gave an excellent performance. I am deeply envious that she can walk downstairs en pointe without looking where she's going whereas when I got home last night & wasn't looking when going upstairs on ordinary flat feet I fell over!

 

 

 

 

I thought Kaneko was lovely as the Fairy Godmother. I hope the back-up filming that was being done last night doesn't have to be used as she had a small slip in her Act I solo which I'm sure she won't want preserved for posterity, as she's usually technically flawless. I rather wish the same dancer played the Fairy Godmother both disguised & in full glory. I know it wouldn't be possible with the very elaborate costume the disguised Fairy Godmother wears but I would have preferred a simpler costume so a single dancer could do a quick cloak removal or suchlike. I'm looking forward to seeing Kaneko as Cinderella later in the run.

 

 

It was a pretty starry line-up of season Fairies, with 2 Principals & 2 First Soloists. Knowing that the RB tend to have the starriest line-ups in solo roles for first night & cinema casts was one reason why I wanted to see this cast (as well as seeing Nunez & Muntagirov, obviously). I enjoyed all 4 solos & thought they also went quite well together as a quartet. I think on first viewing I may have liked Summer's solo best but I think I'd need more viewings to be certain. Autumn's solo seemed to borrow some hand gestures from the Fairy of the Golden Vine in SB, presumably a deliberate homage by Ashton?

 

 

Avis & Acri looked like they were having the time of their lives as the Stepsisters. Avis managed an extraordinary range of exaggerated facial expressions at times. I knew Acri was a good actor but this is the first time I've seen him in an outright character role. They were so vibrant & dominating that it was hard to look at anyone else while they were on stage. At one point during a break for applause in Act I I realised guiltily that I had barely noticed Cinderella for the last couple of minutes as it had been impossible to look away from the Stepsisters' antics. I can understand that the schtick may get tiresome on repeated viewings (I'll be finding out in the next couple of weeks if it does!) but as it was my first time seeing it I found it pretty amusing, though I was mostly smiling rather than laughing out loud (many in the audience were laughing loudly though). The costumes were something else & the headgear looked like it has been inspired by Carmen Miranda! Though I didn't understand why they had been made up with partial bald caps which were visible when they were dressing in Act I. Since the characters are supposed to be young(ish) women, why would they be partly bald? It's not as if the production was set in the Medieval period when it was fashionable for women to shave their front hair to show more forehead.

 

 

 

In hindsight I wish I'd videoed the Stepsisters' part of the red run curtain call rather than take still photos because they carried on their antics in character, including Avis draping himself around the edge of the curtain just before exiting, which sadly I didn't manage to get a photo of.

 

 

I was a bit puzzled by the Jester. I couldn't quite work out what tone he was supposed to be conveying. Usually jesters are humorous but this one came across as rather sinister at times. I thought Nakao danced well though. I could quite understand why the Stepsisters were fighting over Braendesrod as, with all due respect to Mosley as a character actor, he can't compete with Braendesrod in the looks department. (Best cheekbones in the RB?!) Cinderella's Father doesn't have a lot to do but Gartside was fine. Did he appear for the curtain calls? I can't spot him in my photos. Were some of the corps dancing the stars RBS students? I could only recognise about half the dancers so I'm not sure if my dancer recognition, never that good for the lower ranks, was even worse than usual or if some of them were students.

 

I'm now looking forward to seeing 5 more casts in the next 3 weeks. Has anyone yet seen the production from the far right of the stalls circle (seat numbers in the 90s)? I have C92 & C93 booked for 2 casts & based on my full view last night I'm a bit worried that Cinderella might not be visible for much of Act I, given she spent quite a lot of time close to the side of the stage on that side. I'm wondering whether I'd be better trying for Friday rush for the left, low numbers, side (which I have booked for the other 3 casts) & returning my current tickets if I'm successful.

If anyone is going to be at either of the two performances on Monday 10th & would like to meet up in any of the intervals please let me know. As I feared, I found 2 half-hour intervals a bit long last night. In the second interval I went right round the ROH vertically & still had 15 mins to spare!

[JohnS]

Many thanks for your review and photos @Dawnstar. I’ll look forward to seeing the cinema relay for this cast and before then if all goes well I should make Monday’s double Cinderella. I even managed to pick up a ‘Friday Rush’ ticket today for the matinee although I think I’ll be pressed to make Act 1. 

[Ivy Lin]

Does anyone know which cast will be the cinemacast?

[bridiem]

Thank you for your very interesting and entertaining review and photos, @Dawnstar - I was looking forward to hearing what you thought about it all.

 

Edited April 6, 2023 by bridiem

[emmarose]

4 minutes ago, Ivy Lin said:

Does anyone know which cast will be the cinemacast?

 

The first cast, same as last night.

[Dawnstar]

37 minutes ago, JohnS said:

Many thanks for your review and photos @Dawnstar. I’ll look forward to seeing the cinema relay for this cast and before then if all goes well I should make Monday’s double Cinderella. I even managed to pick up a ‘Friday Rush’ ticket today for the matinee although I think I’ll be pressed to make Act 1. 

 

Thanks for alerting me that the rush tickets went on sale today rather than tomorrow. I'd forgotten about the Bank Holiday changing the day. As I have yet to receive any replies to my seating query, I've decided to swap tickets for next Monday matinee & hope I've made the right seating decision.

 

4 minutes ago, bridiem said:

Thank you for your very interesting and entertaining review and photos, @Dawnstar - I was looking forward to hearing what you thought about it all.

 

Thanks. I will try to have shorter thoughts about the other casts!

[Richard LH]

3 hours ago, Fonty said:

What do they look like from other parts of the theatre?  Do they come across well from the amphitheatre, for example?

I was at the centre front of the balcony, my wife was at the centre rear of the orchestra stalls - not our usual seating arrangements by the way! - and we both had very good views of the starry arch lighting. Clearly there will be some more restricted views from parts of the auditorium, as Alison has kindly pointed out.

[Lizbie1]

6 minutes ago, Richard LH said:

 - not our usual seating arrangements by the way!

 

I did wonder!