English National Ballet casting thread 2023/24

[alison]

Okay, hoping this works (to some extent: posts on another thread indicate that the casting links may not be live yet). The thread also indicates some new hirings we may not have been aware of before.

 

We’re excited to announce principal casting for all existing repertoire works returning in the upcoming Season: Akram Khan’s Giselle, Wayne Eagling’s Nutcracker, Mary Skeaping’s Giselle, and Derek Deane’s Swan Lake in-the-round.

Casting for each of these productions is detailed below and on each production page on our website.

We can’t wait to share these performances with you!

 

Akram Khan's Giselle

19 – 21 Oct 2023, Palace Theatre Manchester

26 – 28 Oct 2023, Bristol Hippodrome

Akram Khan's groundbreaking production returns to Manchester and Bristol for the first time since its inaugural tour in 2016, having astounded audiences across the world. 

The title role of Giselle will be danced by Lead Principals Fernanda Oliveira and Erina Takahashi, and Junior Soloist Emily Suzuki*.

Albrecht will be performed by Lead Principal Aitor Arrieta, First Soloist James Streeter, and Junior Soloist Henry Dowden*.

The role of Hilarion will be danced by First Soloist Ken Saruhashi, Soloist Erik Woolhouse, and Junior Soloist Victor Prigent*.

Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis, will be performed by Lead Principal Emma Hawes*, and First Artists Isabelle Brouwers and Angela Wood*.

Daily casting can be viewed online via the links below. 

*debut in role in this production

View casting

Learn more

 

---

 

Nutcracker

29 Nov – 2 Dec 2023, Mayflower Theatre Southampton

14 Dec 2023 – 7 Jan 2024, London Coliseum

Wayne Eagling's festive classic will light up the stage again this winter, touring to the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton before returning to the London Coliseum. 

Clara/Sugar Plum will be performed by Lead Principals Emma Hawes, Shiori Kase, Sangeun Lee*, Fernanda Oliveira and Erina Takahashi, Guest Artist Laurretta Summerscales, First Soloists Julia Conway and Katja Khaniukova, Soloist Precious Adams*, and Junior Soloists Ivana Bueno and Francesca Velicu.

Nephew/Prince will be danced by Lead Principals Aitor Arrieta and Francesco Gabriele Frola, First Soloists Gareth Haw*, Daniel McCormick and Ken Saruhashi, Soloists Fernando Carratalá Coloma, Skyler Martin*, Lorenzo Trossello and Erik Woolhouse, Junior Soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi*, and First Artist Edvinas Jakonis*.

The role of the Nutcracker will be portrayed by First Soloists Daniel McCormick and Junor Souza, Soloist Skyler Martin, Junior Soloists Henry Dowden, Noam Durand*, Rentaro Nakaaki and Victor Prigent*, and First Artists Matthew Astley, Miguel Angel Maidana* and Eric Snyder*.

Dr Drosselmeyer will be performed by First Soloists Fabian Reimair, Junor Souza and James Streeter, Junior Soloist Henry Dowden, and First Artist Giorgio Garrett.

Daily casting can be viewed online via the links below.

*debut in role in this production

View casting

Learn more

 

---

 

Mary Skeaping's Giselle

11 – 21 Jan 2024, London Coliseum

Mary Skeaping's heartbreaking Romantic masterpiece will return to the London Coliseum for the first time since 2017.

The title role of Giselle will be danced by Lead Principals Emma Hawes*, Shiori Kase*, Sangeun Lee*, Fernanda Oliveira and Erina Takahashi, and First Soloist Katja Khaniukova.

Albrecht will be performed by Lead Principals Aitor Arrieta* and Francesco Gabriele Frola*, First Soloists Gareth Haw* and Ken Saruhashi, Soloist Fernando Carratalá Coloma*, and Junior Soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi*. 

Hilarion will be portrayed by First Soloists Fabian Reimair, Junor Souza* and James Streeter, Soloist Erik Woolhouse*, Junior Soloist Henry Dowden*, and First Artist Giorgio Garrett*.

Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis, will be danced by First Soloist Alison McWhinney, Soloist Precious Adams*, Junior Soloists Anna Nevzorova* and Emily Suzuki*, and First Artists Jung ah Choi and Angela Wood*.

Daily casting can be viewed online via the links below. 

*debut in role in this production

View casting

Learn more

 

---

 

Swan Lake in-the-round

12 – 23 Jun 2024, Royal Albert Hall 

Derek Deane's spectacular in-the-round production of the enduring classic returns to the splendour of the Royal Albert Hall in summer 2024. 

The dual roles of Odette/Odile will be performed by Lead Principals Emma Hawes*, Sangeun Lee* and Fernanda Oliveira, and Guest Artist Laurretta Summerscales.

Prince Siegfried will be danced by Lead Principals Aitor Arrieta* and Francesco Gabriele Frola*, First Soloist Gareth Haw*, and Soloist Lorenzo Trossello*. 

The role of Rothbart will be portrayed by First Soloists Fabian Reimair, Junor Souza and James Streeter.

Daily casting can be viewed online via the links below. 

*debut in role in this production

View casting

Learn more

[Lizbie1]

Intrigued by the "Casting TBC" for two of the Swan Lake dates.

[alison]

An interesting junior debut, I suspect?

[capybara]

17 minutes ago, Lizbie1 said:

Intrigued by the "Casting TBC" for two of the Swan Lake dates.

 

Either guests or up and coming ENB dancers which Derek Deane needs to see and approve?

Given that both of the TBC shows are matinees, most likely the latter, as Alison suggests.

 

 

 

 

Edited August 17, 2023 by capybara
typo correction

[alison]

Khaniukova not only gets Giselle, but gets the first night, too!  I was aiming to book for that one anyway as a belated birthday treat

 

Is Gareth Haw particularly tall?  I see he's been partnered with Sangeun Lee, who I think people said was very tall?

 

Excellent to see quite so much casting detail - I hadn't expected all the minor roles as well.  Let's hope it stays roughly as scheduled - those dates are a long time ahead.

[Sim]

First of all, a huge thank you to ENB for publishing the casting so far in advance.  This will make me buy more tickets....great for ENB but not for my bank account!   Now if only BRB would get with the programme....

 

I am particularly happy that Khaniukova has been cast as Giselle with Aitor Arrieta as Albrecht.  I am interested to see that a Junior Soloist has been cast as Albrecht with Emma Haws.  I'm afraid I haven't heard of him; is he new or has he just been under my ENB radar??  Vsevolod Maievskyi is his name.

 

Interesting that Lauretta Summerscales is guesting in Swan Lake AND Nutcracker....

[annamk]

Intriguing and unexpected casting particularly in Mary Skeaping's Giselle ...... 

 

Katja Khaniukova and Aitor Arrieta 

Erina Takahashi and Fernando Carratala Coloma

Emma Hawes and Vsevolod Maievskyi

 

I can see I'll need a couple of Nutcracker tickets too. 

 

[annamk]

Just now, Sim said:

I am interested to see that a Junior Soloist has been cast as Albrecht with Emma Haws.  I'm afraid I haven't heard of him; is he new or has he just been under my ENB radar??  Vsevolod Maievskyi is his name.

 

He has come to ENB from Dresden but before that he was with the Mariinsky for a few years.  He is Ukranian and he left Russia when the Russians invaded Ukraine. 

[capybara]

1 minute ago, Sim said:

I am interested to see that a Junior Soloist has been cast as Albrecht with Emma Haws.  I'm afraid I haven't heard of him; is he new or has he just been under my ENB radar??  Vsevolod Maievskyi is his name.

A tall new man brought in by the new AD.

Look him up on Instagram 😉!

[Sim]

2 minutes ago, annamk said:

 

He has come to ENB from Dresden but before that he was with the Mariinsky for a few years.  He is Ukranian and he left Russia when the Russians invaded Ukraine. 

I like him already....

[Sim]

5 minutes ago, annamk said:

 

I can see I'll need a couple of Nutcracker tickets too. 

 

I'm afraid nothing or no-one could induce me to sit through that again.

[Beryl H]

How good to go through the Coliseum booking system so easily, too good actually as I've booked 3 Giselle's already, this production stays in my memory as the most atmospheric Giselle!

 

 

 

[Dawnstar]

I can only afford 2 Giselles (well, I hope I'll be able to afford 2 nearer the time, I can't afford any right now) & there are 3 casts I'm interested in seeing, so that's a bit of a dilemma. I was expecting a Hawes/Arrieta pairing but as they're not paired I'll have to decide which of them I want to see more. My first choice pairing is, unsurprisingly, Oliveira/Frola. Well, it would have been anyone/Frola but I'm pleased he's paired with Oliveira. I might even go & see them in SL too, even though I don't really fancy seeing SL in the round. I'mg lad to see McWhinney is due to be back performing by January.

 

There's some quite surprising, at least to me, Nutcracker pairings. I was not expecting Bueno to be partnered with Frola, or Hawes & Khaniukova to be partnered with newcomers, or Velicu to be partnered with Saruhashi. I probably won't see it though, as when I saw the production for the first time last year I didn't like it as much as the RB's so I'll probably save my limited budget for more RB performances.

 

As was the case last season, some of the male dancers' ranks seem to have little correlation with the roles they are due to dance.

 

No sign of Mair in any of the casts, which seems rather an odd omission. Even if she's injured, with casting being announced through to next June that would have to be a really bad injury to assume already that she'd be out for the entire season.

Edited August 17, 2023 by Dawnstar
Added last paragraph.

[Jan McNulty]

The official press release:

 

English National Ballet Announces Principal Casting for the 2023-2024 Season

English National Ballet has today announced Principal Casting for returning productions in its 2023-2024 Season, the first to be programmed by new Artistic Director, Aaron S. Watkin.

 

This autumn, English National Ballet tours Akram Khan’s Giselle to Manchester’s Palace Theatre (19-21 October) and the Bristol Hippodrome (26-28 October). Principal casting for these performances sees debuts from Junior Soloists Emily Suzuki as Giselle, Henry Dowden as Albrecht and Victor Prigent as Hilarion. Lead Principal Emma Hawes and First Artist Angela Wood debut in the role of Myrtha.  

 

Festive family favourite, Nutcracker, choreographed by Wayne Eagling, returns with performances at The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton (29 November – 02 December), and the London Coliseum (14 December – 7 January). New Lead Principal, Sangeun Lee, and Soloist, Precious Adams, make their debuts as Clara whilst the role of Nephew will be danced for the first time by First Soloist Gareth Haw, Soloist Skyler Martin, Junior Soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi and First Artist Edvinas Jakonis. Junior Soloists Victor Prigent and Noam Durand, and First Artists Miguel Angel Maidana and Eric Snyder, all perform the role of Nutcracker for the first time. 

 

Mary Skeaping’s Giselle returns to the London Coliseum in January 2024. Lead Principals, Sangeun Lee, Emma Hawes and Shiori Kase will make their debut in the title role. Lead Principals Aitor Arrieta and Francesco Gabriele Frola, First Soloist Gareth Haw, Soloist Fernando Carratalá Coloma and Junior Soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi, debut as Albrecht. First Soloist Junor Souza, Soloist Erik Woolhouse, Junior Soloist Henry Dowden, and First Artist Giorgio Garrett perform the role of Hilarion for the first time. Soloist Precious Adams, Junior Soloists Anna Nevzorova and Emily Suzuki and First Artist Angela Wood, debut in the role of Myrtha. 

 

Derek Deane’s spectacular Swan Lake in-the-round will be performed at the Royal Albert Hall from 12-23 June 2024. Lead Principals Sangeun Lee and Emma Hawes make their debut in the dual role of Odette/Odile whilst Lead Principals Aitor Arrieta and Francesca Gabriele Frola, First Soloist Gareth Haw and Soloist Lorenzo Trossello debut as Prince Siegfried. 

Laurretta Summerscales, former Principal with English National Ballet and current Principal with Bavarian State Ballet, returns as a Guest Artist for the 2023-2024 Season performing as Clara in Nutcracker and as Odette/Odile in Swan Lake in-the-round. 

Principal casting for new productions, Our Voices (21-30 September 2023) and Johan Inger’s Carmen(27 March – 6 April 2024) will be announced in due course. 

 

Full Principal Casting:

 

Akram Khan’s Giselle 
(Giselle / Albrecht / Hilarion / Myrtha)
Palace Theatre, Manchester:

Erina Takahashi / James Streeter / Ken Saruhashi / Emma Hawes*
19^th October 19:30, 21^st October 14:30

Emily Suzuki*/ Henry Dowden*/ Erik Woolhouse / Angela Wood*
20^th October 14:30

Fernanda Oliveira / Aitor Arrieta / Victor Prigent* / Isabelle Brouwers
20^th October 19:30, 21^st October 19:30

 

Bristol Hippodrome:
Fernanda Oliveira / Aitor Arrieta / Victor Prigent / Isabelle Brouwers
26^th October 19:30, 28^th October 14:30

Emily Suzuki / Henry Dowden / Erik Woolhouse / Angela Wood
27^th October 14:30

Erina Takahashi / James Streeter / Ken Saruhashi / Emma Hawes
27^th October 19:30, 28^th October 19:30

 

Nutcracker
(Clara / Nephew / Nutcracker / Drosselmeyer)

Mayflower Theatre, Southampton:

Ivana Bueno / Francesco Gabriele Frola / Rentaro Nakaaki / Fabian Reimair
29^th November 19:30, 1^st December 19:30

Precious Adams* / Skyler Martin* / Daniel McCormick / Junor Souza 
30^th November 14:00

Fernanda Oliveira / Aitor Arrieta / Henry Dowden / James Streeter
30^th November 19:30, 2^nd December 19:30

Sangeun Lee* / Gareth Haw* / Skyler Martin / Junor Souza
2^nd December 14:00

 

London Coliseum:

Ivana Bueno / Francesco Gabriele Frola / Rentaro Nakaaki / Fabian Reimair
14^th December 19:30, 17^th December 14:30, 22^nd December 14:30

Fernanda Oliveira / Aitor Arrieta / Henry Dowden / James Streeter
15^th December 19:30, 20^th December 14:30

Katja Khaniukova / Edvinas Jakonis* / Miguel Angel Maidana* / Giorgio Garrett
16^th December 14:30, 19^th December 14:30, 21^st December 14:30

Erina Takahashi / Fernando Carratala Coloma / Matthew Astley / James Streeter
16^th December 19:30, 19^th December 19:30, 23^rd December 14:30, 28^th December 14:30

Laurretta Summerscales** / Lorenzo Trossello / Junor Souza / Fabian Reimair
20^th December 19:30, 22^nd December 19:30, 24^th December 13:30

Sangeun Lee / Gareth Haw / Skyler Martin / Junor Souza
21^st December 19:30, 23^rd December 19:30, 27^th December 19:30

Precious Adams / Skyler Martin / Daniel McCormick / Fabian Reimair
26^th December 17:00, 29^th December 19:30

Emma Hawes / Vsevolod Maievskyi* / Junor Souza / James Streeter
27^th December 14:30, 28^th December 19:30, 30^th December 14:30, 2^nd January 19:30

Shiori Kase / Erik Woolhouse / Victor Prigent* / Henry Dowden
29^th December 14:30, 30^th December 19:30, 4^th January 19:30, 6^th January 14:30

Francesca Velicu / Ken Saruhashi / Noam Durand* / Giorgio Garrett
3^rd January 14:30, 5^th January 19:30, 7^th January 14:30

Julia Conway / Daniel McCormick / Eric Snyder* / Henry Dowden
3^rd January 19:30, 5^th January 14:30, 6^th January 19:30

 

Giselle 
(Giselle / Albrecht / Hilarion / Myrtha / Peasant Pas de Deux)
London Coliseum:

Katja Khaniukova / Aitor Arrieta* / Fabian Reimair / Alison McWhinney / Ivana Bueno* / Daniel McCormick*
11^th January 19:30, 16^th January 19:30, 21^st January 14:30

Fernanda Oliveira / Francesco Gabriele Frola* / Henry Dowden* / Jung ah Choi / Adriana Lizardi* / Miguel Angel Maidana*
12^th January 19:30, 14^th January 14:30

Sangeun Lee*/ Gareth Haw* / Junor Souza* / Anna Nevzorova* / Julia Conway* / Victor Prigent*
13^th January 14:30, 19^th January 19:30

Erina Takahashi / Fernando Carratala Coloma* / Erik Woolhouse* / Emily Suzuki* / Francesca Velicu* / Shunhei Fuchiyama*
13^th January 19:30, 17^th January 19:30

Emma Hawes* / Vsevolod Maievskyi* / James Streeter / Precious Adams* / Chloe Keneally* / Noam Durand*
18^th January 14:30, 20^th January 19:30

Shiori Kase* / Ken Saruhashi / Giorgio Garrett* / Angela Wood* / Ivana Bueno / Daniel McCormick
18^th January 19:30, 20^th January 14:30

 

Swan Lake in-the-round 
(Odette-Odile / Prince Siegfried / Rothbart)

Royal Albert Hall:

Sangeun Lee* / Gareth Haw* / James Streeter
12^th June 19:30, 15^th June 19:30, 18^th June 19:30

Fernanda Oliveira / Francesco Gabriele Frola* / Fabian Reimair
13^th June 19:30, 15^th June 14:30, 20^th June 19:30

Emma Hawes* / Aitor Arrieta* / Junor Souza
14^th June 19:30, 16^th June 14:30, 22^nd June 19:30

Laurretta Summerscales** / Lorenzo Trossello* / James Streeter
19^th June 19:30, 21^st June 19:30, 23^rd June 14:30

To be announced
20^th June 14:30, 22^nd June 14:30

 

*Debut 
**Guest Artist 

Please note, casting is subject to change. Please see www.ballet.org.uk for up to date casting.

 

 

Notes to Editors

English National Ballet is a National Portfolio Organisation supported by Arts Council England.

Ballymore is Principal Building Partner of English National Ballet.

 

About English National Ballet 

English National Ballet has a long and distinguished history. Founded in 1950 as London Festival Ballet by the great English dancers Alicia Markova and Anton Dolin, it has been at the forefront of ballet’s growth and evolution ever since.

English National Ballet brings world class ballet to the widest possible audience through performances across the UK and on eminent international stages; its distinguished orchestra, English National Ballet Philharmonic; its digital platforms Ballet on Demand and BalletActive; being a UK leader in creative learning and engagement practice, building innovative partnerships to deliver flagship programmes such as Dance for Parkinson’s; and through talent development initiatives including Ballet Futures which looks to create a more diverse and inclusive future for the artform.

 

English National Ballet continues to add ground-breaking new works to its repertoire whilst celebrating the tradition of great classical ballet, gaining acclaim for artistic excellence and creativity. 2019 saw the Company enter a new chapter in its history with a move to a purpose-built state-of-the-art home in east London, allowing a renewed commitment to creativity, ambition, and connection to more people, near and far, than ever before.

[Silver Capricorn]

2 hours ago, Sim said:

First of all, a huge thank you to ENB for publishing the casting so far in advance.  This will make me buy more tickets....great for ENB but not for my bank account!   Now if only BRB would get with the programme....

 

I am particularly happy that Khaniukova has been cast as Giselle with Aitor Arrieta as Albrecht.  I am interested to see that a Junior Soloist has been cast as Albrecht with Emma Haws.  I'm afraid I haven't heard of him; is he new or has he just been under my ENB radar??  Vsevolod Maievskyi is his name.

 

Interesting that Lauretta Summerscales is guesting in Swan Lake AND Nutcracker....

Vsevolod Maievskyi - his story:

https://parkmagazineny.com/dancing-for-life-an-escaped-ukrainian-dancers-story-vsevolod-mayevskyi/

[Emeralds]

Popped over to the Coliseum website immediately to book when ENB notified me  as I’ve missed Fernanda Oliveira’s Nutcracker (various unforeseen circumstances) for the fifth time and don’t want to make it a sixth! The casting (for both Giselle and Nutcracker) looks brilliant and I would go to catch every cast if I didn’t have other pressing commitments (aka real life 😂) to see various debuts and new pairings etc. I know Covid cancelled one season and shortened another drastically....but can’t believe it’s will really be 7 years since we last had (traditional/normal) Giselle from ENB?!? Booked 3 casts of Giselle (as well as the Nutcracker)- looking forward to it. Love this production by Mary Skeaping . 

 

Thank you to Aaron Watkin, @Irmgard for her input and the ENB staff for giving us the casting for Xmas & Jan.  Now my family and friends know what we’re doing at Christmas and January. 👏😉 **(as ever, subject to rail strikes etc)

 

Also very glad that the Coliseum website is so efficient and quick. In and out within 45 mins cf ROH’s website which took 3hours. Might book another performance or more if schedule allows..... I think this could be my largest ENB advance booking for the first time in ages (ever?)

Edited August 17, 2023 by Emeralds

[Emeralds]

3 hours ago, Sim said:

First of all, a huge thank you to ENB for publishing the casting so far in advance.  This will make me buy more tickets....great for ENB but not for my bank account!   Now if only BRB would get with the programme....

 

I am particularly happy that Khaniukova has been cast as Giselle with Aitor Arrieta as Albrecht.  I am interested to see that a Junior Soloist has been cast as Albrecht with Emma Haws.  I'm afraid I haven't heard of him; is he new or has he just been under my ENB radar??  Vsevolod Maievskyi is his name.

 

Interesting that Lauretta Summerscales is guesting in Swan Lake AND Nutcracker....

Sim, I think Vsevolod might not have appeared on your searches because the various different websites, companies, publications etc might have translated his surname and/or first name in different spellings so likewise here.  Our members discussed him on and off in the “joining Mariinsky” threads and “what happened to X during the invasion of Ukraine” threads (with different spelling to ENB’s);- I know of him only from various members’ news/posts (thanks, folks).👍 Looks like a very promising dancer from the clips/videos I found. 

 

Glad to see Katja can now dance Giselle with ENB after she was unable to dance it with United Ukrainian Ballet last September- looking forward to seeing her as Giselle at last. Toi toi toi to Katja and Aitor for January! 

Edited August 17, 2023 by Emeralds

[Emeralds]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

I can only afford 2 Giselles (well, I hope I'll be able to afford 2 nearer the time, I can't afford any right now) & there are 3 casts I'm interested in seeing, so that's a bit of a dilemma. I was expecting a Hawes/Arrieta pairing but as they're not paired I'll have to decide which of them I want to see more. My first choice pairing is, unsurprisingly, Oliveira/Frola. Well, it would have been anyone/Frola but I'm pleased he's paired with Oliveira. I might even go & see them in SL too, even though I don't really fancy seeing SL in the round. I'mg lad to see McWhinney is due to be back performing by January.

 

There's some quite surprising, at least to me, Nutcracker pairings. I was not expecting Bueno to be partnered with Frola, or Hawes & Khaniukova to be partnered with newcomers, or Velicu to be partnered with Saruhashi. I probably won't see it though, as when I saw the production for the first time last year I didn't like it as much as the RB's so I'll probably save my limited budget for more RB performances.

 

As was the case last season, some of the male dancers' ranks seem to have little correlation with the roles they are due to dance.

 

No sign of Mair in any of the casts, which seems rather an odd omission. Even if she's injured, with casting being announced through to next June that would have to be a really bad injury to assume already that she'd be out for the entire season.

Don’t laugh, Dawnstar, but when I saw Frola’s casting I thought you might get a bit of a surprise! Ivana Bueno is really amazing- she was Clara with Woolhouse as Nephew last season but the rail strikes preventing me from catching her. She was a wonderful Louise in the show I could catch. I’m also wondering about Mair - perhaps she’s in Our Voices....or not: A long absence for the women (ie without being cast in advance) and no leaving/farewell announcement  usually means one thing..... 😊🧸🍼(but no, I don’t know any details). 

[Emeralds]

4 hours ago, alison said:

Khaniukova not only gets Giselle, but gets the first night, too!  I was aiming to book for that one anyway as a belated birthday treat

 

Is Gareth Haw particularly tall?  I see he's been partnered with Sangeun Lee, who I think people said was very tall?

 

Excellent to see quite so much casting detail - I hadn't expected all the minor roles as well.  Let's hope it stays roughly as scheduled - those dates are a long time ahead.

Yes, Gareth is very tall. 😊  He was one of Sangeun’s regular partners at Dresden (another of Sangeun’s tall partners at Dresden was Polina Semionova’s brother Dmitry). She is 5 foot 10- she’s talked about it in interviews a lot. She’s a very elegant Odette in Swan Lake from the clip I found- stunning Act 2 pas de deux. (The production, to be very objective and honest, was...er....very unusual. Not my cup of tea.) I think they’d be great in the proscenium arch version (with Ashton’s Waltz and Neapolitan dance etc ) at ENB. Will be interesting to see how they deal with the arena style of the Royal Albert Hall production. I agree re: the casting details- fab. 

[Sim]

1 hour ago, Silver Capricorn said:

Vsevolod Maievskyi - his story:

https://parkmagazineny.com/dancing-for-life-an-escaped-ukrainian-dancers-story-vsevolod-mayevskyi/

Thank you, Silver.  He looks gorgeous...I'm going to be buying a ticket for one of his shows! 

[OnePigeon]

This video happened to pop up on my Facebook feed the other day and I was very impressed with what I saw of Gareth Haw, so I’m pleased that I’ll get the opportunity to see him in Giselle.  Although Maievskyi is very handsome and now I’m a little conflicted 😍😄

 

 

[Dawnstar]

3 hours ago, Emeralds said:

Don’t laugh, Dawnstar, but when I saw Frola’s casting I thought you might get a bit of a surprise! Ivana Bueno is really amazing- she was Clara with Woolhouse as Nephew last season but the rail strikes preventing me from catching her. She was a wonderful Louise in the show I could catch. I’m also wondering about Mair - perhaps she’s in Our Voices....or not: A long absence for the women (ie without being cast in advance) and no leaving/farewell announcement  usually means one thing..... 😊🧸🍼(but no, I don’t know any details). 

 

I don't think I've seen Bueno in any significant roles. As I saw Frola in the Nutcracker last year if I did see the production again this year I'd go for a different cast. Looking at Mair's social media she posted presumably current videos of her practising in the last few days so she presumably isn't injured at any rate.

[LinMM]

Both Gareth Haw and Vsevolod Maievskyi look …..well let’s just say ‘interesting’ to say the least! 

[Emeralds]

50 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I don't think I've seen Bueno in any significant roles. As I saw Frola in the Nutcracker last year if I did see the production again this year I'd go for a different cast. Looking at Mair's social media she posted presumably current videos of her practising in the last few days so she presumably isn't injured at any rate.

Ivana Bueno was an amazing Cinderella at the Albert Hall  (and I don’t use the word amazing to mean “very good”) - she really did amaze us as to how astonishingly impressive she was in taking on the role at short notice - she looked as though she was a new principal who had been cast in the role for months. A lady I met coming out of the show said, “how can she not be a principal dancer?! She’s so good!” (She told me she normally watched the Royal Ballet - that was her frame of reference). I’m still baffled that Ivana hasn’t been elevated to First Soloist, seeing as this isn’t her first lead role she’s excelled at (along with corps and supporting solo parts) but maybe this season is a test of her mettle to see if she can be promoted up another rank. 

Edited August 17, 2023 by Emeralds

[Emeralds]

Not meaning to scare anyone but if planning to see Swan Lake in the round, you might want to consider booking soon even though June 2024 seems ages and ages away.

 

They’re using dynamic or tiered pricing at RAH again, with weekends currently costing more, and heavily selling  performances charging slightly more as well. The prices are more in line with Royal Ballet Don Q and Nutcracker prices than ENB Coliseum Swan Lake and Albert Hall Cinderella prices.

 

I’m quite astounded that there are a good number of boxes of four seats costing £800 (ie £200 per seat) and Stalls seats costing £95 to £103 that have sold well- either that’s a lot of corporate sponsor tickets, lots of tickets reserved for well heeled tourists, or there are lots of RAH patrons completely unaffected by the recent cost of living and inflation rises......, 

[Irmgard]

8 hours ago, alison said:

 

 

Excellent to see quite so much casting detail - I hadn't expected all the minor roles as well.  Let's hope it stays roughly as scheduled - those dates are a long time ahead.

When Aaron and I were doing the casting together for Mary Skeaping's "Giselle", I asked if the Peasant Pas de Deux casting could be included on the website as I know it is of interest to a lot of people.  I also hope the casting will remain as planned and I am glad it has received such a positive response on here. 

[Dawnstar]

16 minutes ago, Emeralds said:

Not meaning to scare anyone but if planning to see Swan Lake in the round, you might want to consider booking soon even though June 2024 seems ages and ages away.

 

They’re using dynamic or tiered pricing at RAH again, with weekends currently costing more, and heavily selling  performances charging slightly more as well. The prices are more in line with Royal Ballet Don Q and Nutcracker prices than ENB Coliseum Swan Lake and Albert Hall Cinderella prices.

 

I’m quite astounded that there are a good number of boxes of four seats costing £800 (ie £200 per seat) and Stalls seats costing £95 to £103 that have sold well- either that’s a lot of corporate sponsor tickets, lots of tickets reserved for well heeled tourists, or there are lots of RAH patrons completely unaffected by the recent cost of living and inflation rises......, 

 

I withdraw my comment about possibly seeing SL then! I'm certainly not prepared to cough up something in the region of £100 given the downsides of the overall experience at Cinderella this season. I'm also not prepared to cough up £100 10 months in advance when the casting could end up being completely different if dancers get injured & the RAH doesn't do refunds or exchanges.

[Dawnstar]

7 minutes ago, Irmgard said:

When Aaron and I were doing the casting together for Mary Skeaping's "Giselle", I asked if the Peasant Pas de Deux casting could be included on the website as I know it is of interest to a lot of people.  I also hope the casting will remain as planned and I am glad it has received such a positive response on here. 

 

I don't suppose you're allowed to say how casting for a production is decided but if you are allowed to give any sort of partial insight then I would be fascinated to know more about the process.

[Emeralds]

12 minutes ago, Irmgard said:

When Aaron and I were doing the casting together for Mary Skeaping's "Giselle", I asked if the Peasant Pas de Deux casting could be included on the website as I know it is of interest to a lot of people.  I also hope the casting will remain as planned and I am glad it has received such a positive response on here. 

Thank you Irmgard, that’s a wonderful idea. I did book extra tickets to see Ivana Bueno and Daniel McCormick in the peasant pas de deux as they both shine in whatever role they’re in. I remember seeing Rina Kanehara and Cesar Corrales in the peasant pas de deux during the last run and their exhilarating performances alone were worth the price of the ticket. 

[Emeralds]

58 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I withdraw my comment about possibly seeing SL then! I'm certainly not prepared to cough up something in the region of £100 given the downsides of the overall experience at Cinderella this season. I'm also not prepared to cough up £100 10 months in advance when the casting could end up being completely different if dancers get injured & the RAH doesn't do refunds or exchanges.

I suppose if you can go on a week day, the week day tickets tend to be cheaper. RAH does get some returns which if they don’t sell quickly enough, could (in theory) push the prices down. But  if all the Stalls seats in the good areas (ie not all the way to the side) have already gone (eg some of the Saturday and Sunday dates), they’re unlikely to get a large number returned. On the other hand, the ones that are selling very slowly could drop a bit in price although it’s anybody’s guess when. This is like trying to predict price fluctuations of an Amazon product- or to predict in advance which meat or vegetables at the supermarket will be sold out and which will be heavily discounted at the end of the day! 

Edited August 17, 2023 by Emeralds

[Irmgard]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I don't suppose you're allowed to say how casting for a production is decided but if you are allowed to give any sort of partial insight then I would be fascinated to know more about the process.

I can only speak for Mary Skeaping's "Giselle" but I can certainly give you a bit of insight into the casting process for that. I have obviously known the company for a long time and have worked with a number of the dancers previously but, during the past season, I tried to watch even more casts in each production than I usually do. Therefore, when Aaron Watkin and I discussed casting for Giselle and Albrecht we considered which dancers looked good together physically and, of course, had that all-important element of chemistry. Some of the partnerships we chose have already been 'tried and tested' in other productions, and then we both came up with suggestions for new partnerships which we think will be exciting.  We used the same process for the Peasant Pas de Deux. Of course, it goes without saying that they are all exceptionally fine dancers ☺️! 

[alison]

2 hours ago, Emeralds said:

Not meaning to scare anyone but if planning to see Swan Lake in the round, you might want to consider booking soon even though June 2024 seems ages and ages away.

 

They’re using dynamic or tiered pricing at RAH again, with weekends currently costing more, and heavily selling  performances charging slightly more as well. The prices are more in line with Royal Ballet Don Q and Nutcracker prices than ENB Coliseum Swan Lake and Albert Hall Cinderella prices.

 

I’m quite astounded that there are a good number of boxes of four seats costing £800 (ie £200 per seat) and Stalls seats costing £95 to £103 that have sold well- either that’s a lot of corporate sponsor tickets, lots of tickets reserved for well heeled tourists, or there are lots of RAH patrons completely unaffected by the recent cost of living and inflation rises......, 

 

Eek - I HATE dynamic pricing, especially when the venue isn't open about it

 

Do you necessarily know that the boxes (and possibly stalls?) seats have sold well?  I know a lot of the boxes, at least, are privately owned, and the owners often don't decide until much nearer the time whether to release them for sale or not.  But £200 per seat is shocking: anyone would think this was the ROH!

[bridiem]

I'm dubious about ballet in the round and even more dubious about seeing it from the upper reaches of the RAH (where I have often sat for music concerts, and it feels very much further away than e.g. the Amphitheatre at the ROH or the balcony at the Coliseum). I went to John Curry's skating show there many years ago and could see very little from up top. And there's no way I would sit there AND pay the prices asked for. So I don't go to the RAH for ballet.