Royal Ballet Casting for Autumn 2023-24

[LinMM]

Yes I agree with Dawnstar above …if this casting was known on Wednesday why on Earth wasn’t website updated before public booking 🤔

All very odd as the Friends can’t especially benefit from this info particularly now. 
I’m like you Dawnstar my other Don Q booking is for Naghdi Ball but if I could have chosen one of Balls performances it would have been with Mayara ( though Mayara and Cesar still first choice pairing) So if I do go again for real may go for Nunez and Muntagirov as not seen them in this and go for encore cinema of Magri with Ball. 
Now for the Nutcracker headache……

[art_enthusiast]

4 hours ago, Lizbie1 said:

Very pleased for all the Nutcracker debutantes.

 

Yes, and now I feel like I need to book for the Nutcracker!

I wasn't intending to, but I would really like to see Marianna Tsembenhoi as Clara.

[jmhopton]

23 minutes ago, art_enthusiast said:

 

Yes, and now I feel like I need to book for the Nutcracker!

I wasn't intending to, but I would really like to see Marianna Tsembenhoi as Clara.

Me too, art_enthusiast. Would also like to see Annette Buvoli as SPF but the only performance they're together is New Years Day when there is public transport but not very much. Seems to be Annette's only performance which is a shame. A lot of work for one performance, unless I've missed one. Its a matinee too which is good news for not needing to stay over but not so great for getting there on time. Might have to take the risk, though. 

Thanks very much for providing the information,  capybara. Very good of you as it must have taken a lot of time and effort.

Edited August 4, 2023 by jmhopton

[LinMM]

I’ve now booked for Viola Pantuso as Clara as she’s also with James Hay!! (Naghdi/Ball main roles) 

Her actual debut is on Dec9th but it’s a Paul Hamlyn treat so can’t go to that! 

[alison]

6 hours ago, capybara said:

The main news regarding Don Q is that Matthew Ball will replace Cesar Corrales at both Cesar's performances. Reece Clarke replaces Cesar in The Nutcracker.

 

THE DANTE PROJECT Dante
Saturday 18 November 7pm: William Bracewell*
Wednesday 22 November 7.30pm: Ryoichi Hirano*

 

Heartbreaking for Cesar.

 

I'd thought there was a good chance of Bracewell getting Dante, but I must admit the thought of Hirano had never crossed my mind.

[Linnzi5]

6 hours ago, capybara said:

Trying hard to copy some casting just received so Nutcracker to follow. Apologies if this has already been posted elsewhere.

The main news regarding Don Q is that Matthew Ball will replace Cesar Corrales at both Cesar's performances. Reece Clarke replaces Cesar in The Nutcracker.

 

THE DANTE PROJECT Dante
Saturday 18 November 7pm: William Bracewell*
Wednesday 22 November 7.30pm: Ryoichi Hirano*
Saturday 25 November 7.30pm: William Bracewell
Monday 27 November 7.30pm: Ryoichi Hirano
Wednesday 29th November 7.30pm: William Bracewell
Friday 1st December 7.30pm: Ryoichi Hirano
Saturday 2nd December 1pm: William Bracewell
Saturday 2nd December 7pm: Ryoichi Hirano

 

 

 

 

Thank you  so much for the casting updates. I'm pleased with my Nutcracker choices. Sorry to hear Corrales will be unable to perform this autumn - I hope he recovers soon. Unsurprisingly, I'm glad I waited to find out the Dante casting before booking. I had a feeling I would want to go . . . 🤣

[zxDaveM]

14 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

I can't understand why, if they can provide the casting information now, they couldn't have provided it a mere 3 days earlier before public booking! I

 

That would require joined up thinking.

Besides, they may have let some people know now, but those some people cannot have included the people that can update the website...

[Sim]

I would have loved to have seen Viola and Marianna as Clara, but have already bought tickets for dates that don't include them.  I really hope that next time the RB releases the whole casting at once, not piecemeal like this.  

 

So no Cesar until 2024?  He will have missed one and a half seasons by then.  I'm starting to wonder whether we will ever see him dance again. 

 

[LinMM]

That’s my fear too Sim however remembering how long Stephen McRae was out from his devastating injury I do keep hopes up! 

[LinMM]

By the way when I went to book the second Nutcracker yesterday I was shocked at how few seats were left!! 
Well for the 19th and 22nd anyway! 
I managed to get a restricted view in the Balcony but it’s row D so can lean away if need be and not bother anybody. There were just a couple of seats left unrestricted but were £145 so definitely not a price I’m prepared to pay for the Balcony! I do hope I’m not going to get priced out of this part of the House now or it will be only standing left for me 😳

[Sim]

33 minutes ago, LinMM said:

That’s my fear too Sim however remembering how long Stephen McRae was out from his devastating injury I do keep hopes up! 

For one reason and another Cesar has hardly danced since he joined the RB.  A real shame. 

 

[LinMM]

There were a couple of interviews he gave to the Ballet Association and LBC which are quite revealing. He has had a knee and ankle injuries and he said he both came back too soon but also continued to dance through one injury before he realised he should have stopped earlier ( I think it was to make a debut in a role) 

So perhaps this time he is going to play it by the book! 
I know this latter is speculation but as some of you can tell he is one of my favourite dancers…I’ve definitely got a soft spot for him ….still never forgotten his Prix blog and ENB performances and his cheeky emerging dancer performance with them and his and Haywards memorable R&J with RB …..so I really hope he can make a full recovery very soon ….fingers crossed for him. 
Im secretly hoping he has a debut in Manon coming up!!! 

[OnePigeon]

I’ve only seen him live in a Swan Lake dress rehearsal and was very impressed.  He’s got that Cuban power and dynamism I love.  I’d booked to see him in the Nutcracker, but had a feeling he might not make it.  I do wish him well - it must be awful for him to be missing these prime years of his dancing career - the mental toll, apart from anything else, this must take is awful.

[San Perregrino]

18 hours ago, capybara said:

Trying hard to copy the rest.........

 

THE NUTCRACKER The Sugar Plum Fairy, The Prince, Clara, Hans Peter, Drosselmeyer
Wednesday 6 December 12.30pm (Schools Matinee): Meaghan Grace Hinkis*, Valentino
Zucchetti, Bomin Kim*, Giacomo Rovero*, Thomas Whitehead
Wednesday 6 December 7.30pm: Fumi Kaneko, William Bracewell, Sae Maeda, Joseph
Sissens, Gary Avis
Thursday 7 December 12.30pm (Schools Matinee): Yuhui Choe, Benjamin Ella, Marianna
Tsembenhoi*, Joshua Junker, Gary Avis
Thursday 7 December 7.30pm (AV1): Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Marcelino Sambé, Sophie
Allnatt, Leo Dixon, Thomas Whitehead
Saturday 9 December 1pm (Paul Hamlyn Christmas Treat): Mariko Sasaki, Joseph Sissens,
Viola Pantuso*, James Hay, Gary Avis
Saturday 9 December 7pm: Fumi Kaneko, William Bracewell, Sophie Allnatt, Leo Dixon,
Thomas Whitehead
Tuesday 12 December 7.30pm (Cinema Live Relay): Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Marcelino
Sambé, Sophie Allnatt, Leo Dixon, Thomas Whitehead
Thursday 14 December 7.30pm: Francesca Hayward, Alexander Campbell, Sae Maeda,
Joseph Sissens, Gary Avis
Monday 18 December 7.30pm: Sarah Lamb, Steven McRae, Meaghan Grace Hinkis,
Valentino Zucchetti, Bennet Gartside
Tuesday 19 December 7.30pm: Yasmine Naghdi, Matthew Ball, Viola Pantuso, James Hay,
Gary Avis
Wednesday 20 December 12.30pm: Lauren Cuthbertson, William Bracewell, Ashley Dean,
Benjamin Ella, Bennet Gartside
Thursday 21 December 1.30pm: Mayara Magri, Reece Clarke**, Sae Maeda, Joseph
Sissens, Gary Avis
Thursday 21 December 7.30pm: Francesca Hayward, Alexander Campbell, Leticia Stock,
Taisuke Nakao, Thomas Whitehead
 

Please see a further post for the remainder of The Nutcracker run

 

 

 

thanks for this.  so, on the back of my envelope I count 28 performances of which 25 are public with, on the starting grid at least, 10 Clara/Hans-Peter couples to see:

 

Sae Maeda, Joseph Sissens x 3

Sophie Allnatt, Leo Dixon x 3

Leticia Stock, Taisuke Nakao x 3 (2 public)

Meaghan Grace Hinkis, Valentino Zucchetti x 3

Viola Pantuso, James Hay x 3

Ashley Dean, Benjamin Ella x 3

Marianna Tsembenhoi, Joshua Junker x 3 (2 public)

Isabella Gasparini, Luca Acri x 3

Madison Bailey, Liam Boswell x2

Bomin Kim, Giacomo Rovero x2 (1 public)

 

pleased to see Sophie Allnatt & Leo Dixon have the live cinema relay. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 5, 2023 by PeterS

[Rob S]

Disappointed to be missing Bomin Kim’s Clara…I’ll be on the train home from Devon on the 27th but relieved to be seeing two new Claras!! 

[San Perregrino]

ps I was hoping that maybe Lukas BB would get a chance to dance the Sugar Plum Prince and Marco Masciari to dance Hans-Peter.

so much talent at the RB.

[LinMM]

Next year no doubt!! 

[alison]

1 hour ago, PeterS said:

 

thanks for this.  so, on the back of my envelope I count 28 performances of which 25 are public with, on the starting grid at least, 10 Clara/Hans-Peter couples to see:

 

Sae Maeda, Joseph Sissens x 3

Sophie Allnatt, Leo Dixon x 3

Leticia Stock, Taisuke Nakao x 3 (2 public)

Meaghan Grace Hinkis, Valentino Zucchetti x 3

Viola Pantuso, James Hay x 3

Ashley Dean, Benjamin Ella x 3

Marianna Tsembenhoi, Joshua Junker x 3 (2 public)

Isabella Gasparini, Luca Acri x 3

Madison Bailey, Liam Boswell x2

Bomin Kim, Giacomo Rovero x2 

 

And of course the really annoying thing is that there are now no standing tickets available for the casts I've just discovered I do want to see after all 😞

[Dawnstar]

13 hours ago, alison said:

I'd thought there was a good chance of Bracewell getting Dante, but I must admit the thought of Hirano had never crossed my mind.

 

I had actually thought of Hirano as a possible for Dante. Last time the two then-oldest male Princiapls were cast so as Hirano's is now the oldest male Principal I thought of him.

 

1 hour ago, Rob S said:

Disappointed to be missing Bomin Kim’s Clara…I’ll be on the train home from Devon on the 27th but relieved to be seeing two new Claras!! 

 

I'm amazed there's anyone you're missing!

[art_enthusiast]

3 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

I had actually thought of Hirano as a possible for Dante. 

 

Same, and I'm really glad he's doing it. I thought there might be three possible Dantes this time though instead of two. I was also thinking of Joseph Sissens as a possible Dante! Though I know he's young, I think he would really bring the required depth to the role. He really shone throughout all the performances I saw of Dante in 2021.

 

So we don't have any Beatrice casting, perhaps they might release it closer to the time? I think in 2021 this information was made available beforehand. (I'm hoping for Marianela Núñez/Natalia Osipova as potential Beatrices)

[Candleque]

Feeling a bit like a lottery winner in the blind booking sweepstakes for getting Viola Pantuso 🩰, James Hay 💛, and Gary Avis ✨🎄✨ to go with Yasmine Naghdi and Matthew Ball 😉

Clara has got to be so much fun to dance. Star of the show (with no needless nail biting fouettés or such). If I could be a ballerina for a day, this is the role I'd pick.

Such a great opportunity for the younger dancers to really shine. It was seeing Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell back when that made me fall in love with them as dancers. (Suits them more than the gold dust Sugar Plum and Prince imo.) Now I'm hoping Santa finds a way for me to afford more of the new Claras 🎁

[Linnzi5]

3 hours ago, LinMM said:

By the way when I went to book the second Nutcracker yesterday I was shocked at how few seats were left!! 
Well for the 19th and 22nd anyway! 
I managed to get a restricted view in the Balcony but it’s row D so can lean away if need be and not bother anybody. There were just a couple of seats left unrestricted but were £145 so definitely not a price I’m prepared to pay for the Balcony! I do hope I’m not going to get priced out of this part of the House now or it will be only standing left for me 😳

£145 for the Balcony sounds really expensive! I was surprised how many tickets have been sold when I looked yesterday but am I right in thinking that Nutcracker always sells quickly?

[Linnzi5]

53 minutes ago, Candleque said:

Feeling a bit like a lottery winner in the blind booking sweepstakes for getting Viola Pantuso 🩰, James Hay 💛, and Gary Avis ✨🎄✨ to go with Yasmine Naghdi and Matthew Ball 😉

Clara has got to be so much fun to dance. Star of the show (with no needless nail biting fouettés or such). If I could be a ballerina for a day, this is the role I'd pick.

Such a great opportunity for the younger dancers to really shine. It was seeing Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell back when that made me fall in love with them as dancers. (Suits them more than the gold dust Sugar Plum and Prince imo.) Now I'm hoping Santa finds a way for me to afford more of the new Claras 🎁

Their performances (as Clara and Hans Peter) are some of my favourites. I think you have done very well blind-booking and getting that cast! 

[Silver Capricorn]

Please, where can I find the cast for The Nutcracker?  The ROH website still only lists Sugar Plum Fairy and Prince for individual performances.  I am specifically concerned with the performance on January 13.

[Guest oncnp]

3 minutes ago, Silver Capricorn said:

Please, where can I find the cast for The Nutcracker?  The ROH website still only lists Sugar Plum Fairy and Prince for individual performances.  I am specifically concerned with the performance on January 13.

Read @capybara upthread

[Rob S]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I had actually thought of Hirano as a possible for Dante. Last time the two then-oldest male Princiapls were cast so as Hirano's is now the oldest male Principal I thought of him.

 

 

I'm amazed there's anyone you're missing!

I’ll have to miss Sasaki as SPF and Bomin as I can’t get back from Devon any earlier…I’m stressed enough getting to London for the evening performance on the 27th 

[LinMM]

On the 13th Jan it’s Meaghan Grace Hinkis  Valentino Zucchetti and Benet Gartside 

 

It was £145 for Row B and C and side A in the Balcony. 
I really hate going over £100 but will occasionally for special performances to me but these days even row D in the Balcony is hovering around £100 and just above. 
The most I’ve paid was for a Nutcracker last year which was £132 if I remember correctly in the back Stalls. 
Row D in the Balcony is nearly always the same price as Row A,B C and D central Amphi ….where I used to sit a few years back. 

Edited August 5, 2023 by LinMM

[Dawnstar]

Does anyone else find that inevitably the SPF & Princes and the Clara & Hans-Peters you want to see do not align or is it just me? I would really like to see Pantuso as Clara, she's stood out for me in the corps since she was 3rd year US, but the rest of her cast, Hay, Naghdi & Ball, I saw last year so I don't really feel I can justify seeing them again when there are so many dancers I have yet to see. I likewise would like to see Bailey & Boswell together but I saw them separately last year, & saw Nunez & Muntagirov last year, so again I can't justify it. With 1 performance already booked I feel like I have to try to choose a cast the majority of whom I haven't seen before for the only other performance I can afford to book. If only the Nutcracker tickets weren't so expensive!

[zxDaveM]

21 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

Does anyone else find that inevitably the SPF & Princes and the Clara & Hans-Peters you want to see do not align or is it just me? I would really like to see Pantuso as Clara, she's stood out for me in the corps since she was 3rd year US, but the rest of her cast, Hay, Naghdi & Ball, I saw last year so I don't really feel I can justify seeing them again

 

no, not just you.

Though saying that, I can always justify seeing Yasmine Naghdi! 😉

 

[Linnzi5]

20 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

Does anyone else find that inevitably the SPF & Princes and the Clara & Hans-Peters you want to see do not align or is it just me? I would really like to see Pantuso as Clara, she's stood out for me in the corps since she was 3rd year US, but the rest of her cast, Hay, Naghdi & Ball, I saw last year so I don't really feel I can justify seeing them again when there are so many dancers I have yet to see. I likewise would like to see Bailey & Boswell together but I saw them separately last year, & saw Nunez & Muntagirov last year, so again I can't justify it. With 1 performance already booked I feel like I have to try to choose a cast the majority of whom I haven't seen before for the only other performance I can afford to book. If only the Nutcracker tickets weren't so expensive!

Yes. I feel the same way. I'd love to see Pantuso (and many others) but have seen the rest of the cast. I am seeing Gary Avis this year (I didn't get to see him last year, alas, and he is my favourite Drosselmeyer), so I am pleased about that. I've seen Nunez and Muntagirov many times and love, love, love them, but really would love to see them paired with others (I understand they are crowd-pleasers and an established and very popular pairing). Alas, I don't have unlimited funds and have to limit what I see as I just don't enjoy standing (though I am standing for the DQ Friends' rehearsal). I am also wanting to book for Manon and Swan Lake and other programmes so really have to be a bit careful. I don't go and see multiple performances generally as I like certain seats and would end up in big bother with my other half if I spend too much on tickets (I spend a lot as it is, as I also see a lot of West End musicals regularly). The conclusion that I have come to is that I need a lottery win to finance my ballet addiction!  

[art_enthusiast]

1 hour ago, Linnzi5 said:

Yes. I feel the same way. I'd love to see Pantuso (and many others) but have seen the rest of the cast.

 

Yep definitely. I will be able to make the 9th Jan performance with Marianna Tsembenhoi as Clara, who I really want to see, but I did already see Mayara Magri as the SPF in early 2022. It will be much harder for me to make Marianna's 1st Jan matinée with Annette Buvoli's debut as the SPF, given the transport on New Year's Day! I really like the 7th December cast but unfortunately it's a school's matinée.

 

Still, I haven't see Reece Clarke as the Nutcracker Prince yet. And there's a few other biggish parts in the Nutcracker such as the Rose Fairy, hoping to possibly catch a new debut in that role.

And Manon is really a booking priority! 

[San Perregrino]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

Does anyone else find that inevitably the SPF & Princes and the Clara & Hans-Peters you want to see do not align or is it just me? I would really like to see Pantuso as Clara, she's stood out for me in the corps since she was 3rd year US, but the rest of her cast, Hay, Naghdi & Ball, I saw last year so I don't really feel I can justify seeing them again when there are so many dancers I have yet to see. I likewise would like to see Bailey & Boswell together but I saw them separately last year, & saw Nunez & Muntagirov last year, so again I can't justify it. With 1 performance already booked I feel like I have to try to choose a cast the majority of whom I haven't seen before for the only other performance I can afford to book. If only the Nutcracker tickets weren't so expensive!

Just a thought that perhaps it’s thought better practice to début a role surrounded and supported by more experienced dancers rather than other débuts? 

[capybara]

4 hours ago, Silver Capricorn said:

Please, where can I find the cast for The Nutcracker?  The ROH website still only lists Sugar Plum Fairy and Prince for individual performances.  I am specifically concerned with the performance on January 13.

 

The 13th Jan cast is: Magri, Clarke, Hinkis, Zucchetti and Gartside.

 

I copied the casting onto this thread when I realised that, although it came to me officially, it wasn't online.

I wanted BCF members to have the heads up as soon as possible as there are many performances which are looking very booked up already.