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RB Sleeping Beauty - May/June 2023


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A fabulous Sleeping Beauty last night, Yasmine Naghdi effortlessly breezing through all the challenges and showing such radiance in her achievements. And sobering to hear at the Stage Door just what effort is required to perform Aurora when, with Yasmine, everything looks so simple and natural. Matthew Ball is a great Florimund and he and Yasmine make wonderful partners. Here’s hoping we see a lot of them on stage together next season.

 

Kristen McNally is a magnificent Carabosse. She always brings something special to every role. 

 

I very much enjoyed Mayara Magri’s Lilac Fairy and all the Fairies delivered their solos with aplomb. They and the corps in all their guises looked incredibly well schooled throughout, a pleasure to see.

 

The performance really showed the Royal Ballet at its best and it’s great that next week’s cinema relay features this cast. The performance was filmed in case of any problems with the relay. There were a couple of slight glitches. The black out for Carabosse’s Act 1 disappearance was rather late last night and one of Red Riding Hood’s trees looked as if it was going to stay for the grand PDD. And with Yasmine and Matt giving such a fabulous performance, who wouldn’t want to be there?

 

Just as an aside and in support of @bridiem’s suggestion that it would have been neater to have separated Cinderella and the second run of Sleeping Beauty by the Triple Bill, I saw the Wozzeck rehearsal yesterday morning. That certainly provided the cold shower needed for appreciating the delights of Sleeping Beauty.

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I won't bore everyone by repeating what I said up-thread about how wonderful Miss Naghdi is as Aurora, and Matthew Ball as Florimund.  Matthew always imbues his characters with a little something extra, and I loved the way he made it very clear, with a small smile and pitying shake of his head, how much in contempt he held the frivolities of the people he had to associate with.  This was a prince with something deeper to him, so it makes eminent sense that he would easily fall in love with a vision in his desperation to escape his situation.

 

I continue to be bowled over by Miss Naghdi's musicality, her beautiful classicism, the journey she takes us on from bouncy young girl (she is like a lamb gambolling in the hills after the joy of birth) to regal future queen...and doing it all with the seeming ease of a walk in the park.  Just beautiful.  It is a farce that she has never once been nominated for an award. But hey, she dances for her audiences, not for the critics.  What lucky audiences we are.  

 

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1 hour ago, JohnS said:

… one of Red Riding Hood’s trees looked as if it was going to stay for the grand PDD. And with Yasmine and Matt giving such a fabulous performance, who wouldn’t want to be there?

 

13 minutes ago, Sim said:

… It is a farce that she has never once been nominated for an award. But hey, she dances for her audiences, not for the critics.  What lucky audiences we are.  


There is absolutely nothing I can add to JohnS and Sim’s detailed reviews but I’d say the above two extracts totally sum up the way I felt after last night’s performance. Sublime! 
And I did also like the nonchalant way that David Donnelly’s wolf sauntered on, just prior to catching sight of Red Riding Hood. 

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12 minutes ago, Scheherezade said:


And I did also like the nonchalant way that David Donnelly’s wolf sauntered on, just prior to catching sight of Red Riding Hood. 

 

I realised either during the Beauty Mixed or the previous run of the full Sleeping Beauty that you HAVE to watch the wolf's entrance when it's David Donnelly....I used to watch LRRH tiptoeing around until I first saw DD's unique swagger and now just look out for his entrance each time. A couple of performances ago I realised I hadn't checked the cast list but sure enough could tell it was David just from his background strolling 😄

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Sitting in Euston waiting for my train home and I can't get  (& nor do I want) pictures of last night's performance out of my mind. Joseph Sissons is the perfect Bluebird, with his ballon and batterie emphasised with his beautiful feet. Matthew Ball the perfect Prince and I agree completely with Sim's observations - this is no spoilt empty headed prince - but rather a young man surrounded by a superficial Court. I must admit i had a little giggle when the little boy/tree forgot to leave the stage and i did wonder if Matthew or any of our present company members had ever debuted  as a tree...

And then there was Yasmine Naghdi the sparkling effervescent beauty of her performance is just wonderful! I felt so very lucky to witness her artistry yet again because she really is the superlative Aurora of this generation in the Royal Ballet. What a ballerina....❣️

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How lovely to read this burst of BCF enthusiasm for last night’s cast and Yasmine Naghdi in particular 🤩.

 

(P.S. There are many RB dancers who would have been young enough to be a tree when the current production opened (2006) ! )

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1 hour ago, Rob S said:

I realised either during the Beauty Mixed or the previous run of the full Sleeping Beauty that you HAVE to watch the wolf's entrance when it's David Donnelly....I used to watch LRRH tiptoeing around until I first saw DD's unique swagger and now just look out for his entrance each time. A couple of performances ago I realised I hadn't checked the cast list but sure enough could tell it was David just from his background strolling 😄

 

Annoyingly I haven't managed to see him in the role & I bet the cinecast will be focusing on Red Riding Hood at that point so I won't get to see it then either.

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15 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

Annoyingly I haven't managed to see him in the role & I bet the cinecast will be focusing on Red Riding Hood at that point so I won't get to see it then either.

 

I hope you do get to see it, Dawnstar. It's one of those pitch-perfect little cameo moments. As RobR says, something "you HAVE to watch".

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I went to yesterday evening’s show on the strength of the forum reviews for this cast’s first performance.

 

I thought Yasmine Naghdi’s Aurora was sublime: grace and warmth personified, utterly enchanting and entirely unaffected or showy. She is so technically able she makes the tricky steps look anything but and her stamina is quite extraordinary. Brava.

 

Matthew Ball was a generous, charming, affectionate partner. His pre Dream scene solo was danced with more freedom than I’ve noticed from him before - his style reminded me very much of William Bracewell. His grand pas solo was really a step up from any dancing I’ve seen from him previously. Bravo.

 

The grand pas was executed flawlessly; the affection between them was unmistakeable; musicality and dancing in fine harmony. Bravi.

 

Elsewhere Joe Sissens and Isabella Gasparini gave a phenomenal account of Bluebird and Princess Florine. I admired Calvin Richardson’s Florestan and his sisters, Sae Maeda and Annette Buvoli were exceptional. It was, I felt, taken at terrific speed by the orchestra and is so much more exciting for that.

 

A showcase for the talents of the RB across the ranks, it will look terrific in the cinemas. 

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11 hours ago, Rob S said:

 

I realised either during the Beauty Mixed or the previous run of the full Sleeping Beauty that you HAVE to watch the wolf's entrance when it's David Donnelly....I used to watch LRRH tiptoeing around until I first saw DD's unique swagger and now just look out for his entrance each time. A couple of performances ago I realised I hadn't checked the cast list but sure enough could tell it was David just from his background strolling 😄

I think David Donnelly should always be watched, especially in any of the character roles, he consistently adds something special to his roles.  And his Lensky was very watchable too 😍

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1 hour ago, Silke H said:

I think David Donnelly should always be watched, especially in any of the character roles, he consistently adds something special to his roles.  And his Lensky was very watchable too 😍

Yes. He also gave a finely considered Paris, one of the best I’ve seen. He really made something of the role.  

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8 hours ago, Sim said:

Yes. He also gave a finely considered Paris, one of the best I’ve seen. He really made something of the role.  

 

And he was memorable in The Invitation - I thought things would take off for him after that but they didn't really. 

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9 hours ago, Sim said:

Yes. He also gave a finely considered Paris, one of the best I’ve seen. He really made something of the role.  

Oh, yes, of course, he was an absolutely wonderful Paris too.

 

I first noticed David and Annette in 2013's RBS end of year performance in La Destinée.  Stunning!  I'm so glad they both got contracts with RB and that we got to follow their career quite closely 😀

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On 01/03/2023 at 15:38, Sim said:

She is indeed dancing the role tonight in this cast.  She is a wonderful dancer, especially if you are a fan of beautiful classicism. I highly recommend you see her Aurora live, if you can.  

Well, I have just managed to snag myself a stalls seat for Sleeping Beauty on Wednesday! I was weighing up restricted view options on Friday rush when it appeared......felt like fate, and thus justified the expense!! Very excited!

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3 hours ago, Cescablue said:

Well, I have just managed to snag myself a stalls seat for Sleeping Beauty on Wednesday! I was weighing up restricted view options on Friday rush when it appeared......felt like fate, and thus justified the expense!! Very excited!

You won't be disappointed Cesca!  :)

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17 hours ago, Sim said:

He also gave a finely considered Paris, one of the best I’ve seen. He really made something of the role.


That is an accolade for David Donnelly for sure. Fwiw, I always feel a bit sorry for the dancer playing Paris. It is a named part, but he doesn't get any show-off steps or swordplay like the other lads. And MacMillan makes him much more of a bullying cad than Shakespeare ever did. Paris doesn't even get a proper dramatic death scene; it is over in a blink-and-you-miss-it second 🤣 🗡

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53 minutes ago, Candleque said:


That is an accolade for David Donnelly for sure. Fwiw, I always feel a bit sorry for the dancer playing Paris. It is a named part, but he doesn't get any show-off steps or swordplay like the other lads. And MacMillan makes him much more of a bullying cad than Shakespeare ever did. Paris doesn't even get a proper dramatic death scene; it is over in a blink-and-you-miss-it second 🤣 🗡

Agree.  What I love about DD's interpretation is that we can see how much he regrets it when he has shaken Juliet in frustration at her rejection of him.  He looks down at his hands disconsolately, almost like asking them what they have done.  He doesn't want to become a bully like Lord C or possibly his own father as well.  We can also see clearly how hurt he is at J's behaviour when she seemed coyly interested at first, and he can't understand what  he's done to deserve that treatment.  The frustrating outburst is therefore understandable:  hurt, frustrated, humiliated...he lashes out.  

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As well as Donnelly managing to make Paris somewhat sympathetic, I thought he did the same with Hilarion. I saw 4 dancers in the role in the last Giselle run & he was the only one who managed to make me really feel for Hilarion as well as Giselle at the end of Act I.

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On Wednesday's Composer of the Week, (BBC R 3: May 17), about 18 minutes in, there is an interesting discussion of Sleeping Beauty. Monica Mason explains why the Rose Adagio is so terrifying for dancers and talks of how incredibly nervous Fonteyn was before performing Beauty in Russia. Matthew Bourne says he was unsure about doing a production based on SB for 20 years but visiting Tchaikovsky's home and seeing his small bedroom was what decided him to go ahead.

 

Available on Sounds.

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Hmm.  With only a few days to go, my "usual suspects" cinemas are showing far fewer seats sold than normal for the cinema relay of this.  There's no mention on the production page that the performance is even being filmed, let alone anything trumpeting that there is a live relay happening.  Time the marketing department did some marketing?

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On 18/05/2023 at 23:16, Silke H said:

I think David Donnelly should always be watched, especially in any of the character roles, he consistently adds something special to his roles.  And his Lensky was very watchable too 😍

 

Yes, I think he has the potential to be a first rate character artist as well as being a really talented dancer.  I loved him as the mouse king in Nutcracker.  Dancing in that costume with a long tail and a big head is not easy but he put so much character and intelligence into it.

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I was at tonight's performance and wondered if anyone could tell me if that was typical of a Natalia Osipova performance. 

 

I booked my ticket specifically to see Olivia Cowley's first performance of Carabosse and she was fantastic.  Showered with a large number of bouquets at the end too. She was thrilled! 

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I was also at tonight’s performance and really enjoyed it. My first time seeing Natalia Osipova as Aurora.

 

I thought she was excellent, particularly in the Act 2 vision pas de deux. Of course Olivia Cowley and Nadia Mullova-Barley were also wonderful. I really enjoyed Nadia’s Lilac Fairy. Reece Clarke superb of course, and Yuhui Choe/Joonhyuk Jun in the Bluebird variations.

 

I very much appreciate Osipova’s unique style, characterisation and how she changes things in certain areas. I like seeing diversity in interpretations. It would be dull if every performance of this ballet was exactly the same.

 

 

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15 minutes ago, JennyTaylor said:

Showered with a large number of bouquets at the end too.


Hoping there’ll be some photos. Looking forward very much to seeing Olivia Cowley at next week’s Bank Holiday matinee.

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2 hours ago, art_enthusiast said:

 

 

I very much appreciate Osipova’s unique style, characterisation and how she changes things in certain areas. I like seeing diversity in interpretations. It would be dull if every performance of this ballet was exactly the same.

 

 


Like missing that supported hop sequence near the end of their Act III pdd 

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9 hours ago, art_enthusiast said:

I very much appreciate Osipova’s unique style, characterisation and how she changes things in certain areas. I like seeing diversity in interpretations. It would be dull if every performance of this ballet was exactly the same.

 

7 hours ago, Rob S said:

Like missing that supported hop sequence near the end of their Act III pdd 


@art_enthusiast - are you implying that it’s OK to adapt the choreography to suit the capacity of an individual dancer?

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