DON QUIXOTE - ROYAL BALLET AUTUMN 2023

[bangorballetboy]

It's easy

 

DON QUEUE

[Sophoife]

Oh @Scheherezade can we do a thread on Ballet Mondegreens? 🤣

[capybara]

1 hour ago, PeterS said:

given it was captured by Dancers Diary i'd say that it was pre-planned not improvised.  impressive nonetheless

 

Does it matter? Vadim has leapt onto the stage before (including during this DQ run) and I loved the 'competition' from Marianela. Why on earth should she not pre-plan that? Her last Kitri this season (possibly, and perish the thought, her last ever at the ROH) and, in any event, a great way to 'go out'.

 

And, by the way, @dancersdiary is often snapping shows until the very end.

[Balletfanp]

I agree, I loved the jeté and even more I loved the mischievous giggly glance she cast back to Vadim behind the curtain! 😂

 

(Also spotted them at the stage door high fiving each other and hugging beyond the glass doors just before they emerged to the crowds!).

[Scheherezade]

38 minutes ago, Sophoife said:

Oh @Scheherezade can we do a thread on Ballet Mondegreens? 🤣

Oh, yes please!

[Fonty]

I usually pronounce it the Spanish way but now I can't get the idea of Donkey Shot out of my head.

 

I saw this for the first time last night.  I have always admired Nunez, but as I normally only go once to any production there were others I preferred.  Hence I haven't seen that much of Muntagirov performing live either, as he is her regular partner, although I have enjoyed the cinema performances very much. 

 

Well, last night I thought they were both on fire.  You can see how comfortable they are with each other, which makes their pas de deux sensational.  This is a ballet where the characters suit their sunny personalities, and their technical skills were nothing short of miraculous.  I don't think either of them put a foot wrong all night, and on top of that they seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely.  All the supporting dancers were terrific as well.  Everyone seemed to be revelling in being on stage and he whole thing had the feel of a last night, which I suppose it was in a way.  Hugely enjoyable.  

I was struggling slightly trying to make out who some of the other dancers were.  My phone was playing up, and although I tried to remember the cast beforehand, not having seen it before it was sometimes difficult to make out who was who.  Obviously I recognised Hirano, and I loved his strutting matador, I was entranced by his twinkling pink calves.  Buvoli made what looked like a fiendishly difficult solo look smooth and flowing.  Others that stood out were Choe, always delightful in everything she does, and the girl in the lilac tutu in the dream sequence (Amour?)  in the second act whose name I can't remember (I am sure someone will let me know). 

 

One think I noticed was that the dancers and the orchestra seemed to be working together.  Seems an odd thing to say, I know, but frequently in the past there have been moments when dancers have been struggling with the tempo.  Last night it all seemed perfect.   On that topic, I noticed when Nunez got half way through her fouettes in the last act, there was one moment when I thought "Oh no, she is going to get out of time with the music."  There seemed to be a glance towards the conductor, the tempo definitely speeded up, and so did she.  I am sure she beamed at him at the end after her spectacular finish.   

 

Others have mentioned all the movement going on in the crowd during the dancing.   I didn't notice it too much, but I did dislike having two children larking about with capes right behind the main couple as they are performing a pas de deux.    That really should NOT be happening.  Nor should the ladies be fluttering their fans continuously.  It is a distraction.

 

Loved the curtain calls from Nunez and Muntagirov.  I thought it showed what a wonderful sense of humour they both have, and how much they like each other.  

[Rob S]

49 minutes ago, capybara said:

 

Does it matter? Vadim has leapt onto the stage before (including during this DQ run) and I loved the 'competition' from Marianela. Why on earth should she not pre-plan that? Her last Kitri this season (possibly, and perish the thought, her last ever at the ROH) and, in any event, a great way to 'go out'.

 

And, by the way, @dancersdiary is often snapping shows until the very end.

 

I think the comment was nothing more than a response to my frustration about not getting THE moment of the curtain call

[zxDaveM]

2 hours ago, Sophoife said:

Just to remind those who've heard French and/or British people call it "Don Quickshott" or "Don Keyshott" that the French spelling is in fact Don Quichotte 😉

 

'donkey shot' (perhaps more "donkey show-t") is always how Sylvie Guillem charmingly pronounced it, and it always stuck with me 🙂

[Linnzi5]

Donkey Shot? Love it! 🤣

[jm365]

Avoid all the problems and stick with Don Q!!

[alison]

2 hours ago, Balletfanp said:

(Also spotted them at the stage door high fiving each other and hugging beyond the glass doors just before they emerged to the crowds!).

 

I actually half-expected them to high-five each other at the end of the grand pas de deux!

[Dawnstar]

15 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

Oh and I love it that now the men are allowed bouquets on stage we are getting flower exchanges between pairs rather than just the woman giving one to the man.

 

I hope it's okay to add a couple of photos of this moment, as it's not covered by the much better photos already posted by Rob S.

 

 

Edited October 20, 2023 by Dawnstar

[capybara]

11 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I hope it's okay to add a couple of photos of this moment, as it's not covered by the much better photos already posted by Rob S.

 

 

And, thus, a new RB tradition becomes embedded 🌸😊

[JennyTaylor]

I really enjoyed last night - wonderful dancing from Marianela and Vadim and they really did seem in party mood.  I also enjoyed the whole cast with Ryo being a particular favourite as Espada. 

 

My attention has been caught by Tom Whitehead in all the roles he has played in this run. Last night he was Gamache and I was beguiled in Act 3 to look at his interplay with his fiancee at the side of the stage which was very funny.  I felt there was less characterisation from the two Principals than I've seen with other pairings: the emphasis was more on the spectacle of the dancing. 

 

I love ballets like DonQ - happy, happy, happy plus gorgeous music.    

[Guest oncnp]

1 hour ago, alison said:

 

I actually half-expected them to high-five each other at the end of the grand pas de deux!

And I had a running bet with myself on who was going to start giggling first. They both looked on the verge 

[San Perregrino]

3 hours ago, capybara said:

 

Does it matter? Vadim has leapt onto the stage before (including during this DQ run) and I loved the 'competition' from Marianela. Why on earth should she not pre-plan that? Her last Kitri this season (possibly, and perish the thought, her last ever at the ROH) and, in any event, a great way to 'go out'.

 

And, by the way, @dancersdiary is often snapping shows until the very end.

No it doesn’t matter.
As with the flower giving to one’s partner it is more a convention and rarely spontaneous.

Nonetheless it is endearing and shows mutual appreciation and gets me every time.

@dancersdiary will go backstage as the curtain falls unless he has a specific reason to stay out front for the curtain calls eg last night.

[capybara]

9 minutes ago, PeterS said:

No it doesn’t matter.
As with the flower giving to one’s partner it is more a convention and rarely spontaneous.

Nonetheless it is endearing and shows mutual appreciation and gets me every time.

@dancersdiary will go backstage as the curtain falls unless he has a specific reason to stay out front for the curtain calls eg last night.

No, the flower giving between partners isn’t spontaneous and only a couple of ballerinas used to do it. But, as with the jump and the jete, who cares?

Audiences seem to love it in the same way that they love their Drosselmeyers to throw glitter on their red runs.

 

But thank goodness the applause during a show or between elements of a pas de deux hasn’t (yet) reached Russian proportions.

[Ian Macmillan]

@dancersdiary?? Who he?  Anyone we should know?

[Dawnstar]

1 hour ago, PeterS said:

As with the flower giving to one’s partner it is more a convention and rarely spontaneous.

 

I don't know about Muntagirov giving a flower to Nunez but on Saturday when Bracewell gave one to Kaneko (which was the first time I'd seen it done by both dancers) I think it was spontaneous, as when I spoke to him afterwards & said it was nice to see flower giving now going both ways he said that he'd seen her getting a flower out of her bouquets & then decided to do the same himself. In fact looking back at my curtain call photos it looks as though Bracewell was hiding the flower behind his back before bringing it out to give to Kaneko! (I hope it's okay to post a sequence of photos. If not please let me know & I'll remove them.)

 

Edit: photos removed as per Silke's post.

Edited October 20, 2023 by Dawnstar

[Silke H]

22 minutes ago, Ian Macmillan said:

@dancersdiary?? Who he?  Anyone we should know?

It's Andrej Uspenski's social media handle

[San Perregrino]

27 minutes ago, Ian Macmillan said:

@dancersdiary?? Who he?  Anyone we should know?

it's an official ROH photographer who often stands at the back of the Stalls Circle and has permission to take photos (very very discretely i may add) during performances.  he is often there to capture debuts or at the request of a specific artist.  @dancersdiary is his Instagram profile.  

[Silke H]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I hope it's okay to add a couple of photos of this moment, as it's not covered by the much better photos already posted by Rob S.

 

 

Hi @Dawnstar I had posted 💐 series of Nela/Vadim on page 16 and of Fumi/Will on page 17  ☺️

[capybara]

I think that the first time I saw an exchange of a single flower (last season) it was spontaneous too -certainly Vadim had a terrible struggle to pull one out of a bunch.

 

But I for one am not complaining if it becomes ‘normalised’. And the nice thing is that each man seems to be doing it his own way.

[Dawnstar]

11 minutes ago, Silke H said:

Hi @Dawnstar I had posted 💐 series of Nela/Vadim on page 16 and of Fumi/Will on page 17  ☺️

 

I'm so sorry for interfering. I've removed my photos from Saturday. The Nunez/Muntagirov ones must be from different performances so I hope it's okay to leave those but if not then I'll have to ask a moderator to delete as it's too late for me to do so.

Edited October 20, 2023 by Dawnstar

[Richard LH]

4 hours ago, Fonty said:

the girl in the lilac tutu in the dream sequence (Amour?)  in the second act whose name I can't remember (I am sure someone will let me know)

Sae Maeda was Amour last night....I agree, she really sparkles in the role. 

[Silke H]

17 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I'm so sorry for interfering. I've removed my photos from Saturday. The Nunez/Muntagirov ones must be from different performances so I hope it's okay to leave those but if not then I'll have to ask a moderator to delete as it's too late for me to do so.

@Dawnstar I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to take any photos down, I just pointed you to my little series I had also shared in case it had been overlooked

[Jan McNulty]

31 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I'm so sorry for interfering. I've removed my photos from Saturday. The Nunez/Muntagirov ones must be from different performances so I hope it's okay to leave those but if not then I'll have to ask a moderator to delete as it's too late for me to do so.

 

 

Hi @Dawnstar your photos are still visible in Silke's post and they are absolutely terrific!!

 

Please keep posting your photographs - the more the merrier!

[alison]

48 minutes ago, PeterS said:

it's an official ROH photographer who often stands at the back of the Stalls Circle and has permission to take photos (very very discretely i may add) during performances.  he is often there to capture debuts or at the request of a specific artist.  @dancersdiary is his Instagram profile.  

 

Ah.  I guess that's who he was, then.  Indeed, very discreet.

[Sophoife]

1 hour ago, PeterS said:

it's an official ROH photographer who often stands at the back of the Stalls Circle and has permission to take photos (very very discretely i may add) during performances.  he is often there to capture debuts or at the request of a specific artist.  @dancersdiary is his Instagram profile.  

 

As @Silke H noted up-thread, he is former dancer Andrej Uspenski. Nice to know his name as well as that he is very discreet in taking his photos!

 

BTW "discrete" and "discreet" mean two different things, and the two are often confused, much like "horde" and "hoard". My personal hashtag elsewhere is #NitPickersNotSoAnonymous 😉 and I find myself using it more and more frequently, especially on the site formerly named Twitter. I won't say "formerly known as" because most of us still call it that 🤣 alleged billionaires notwithstanding.

 

 

Edited October 20, 2023 by Sophoife
Remembered to add Silke's nick/handle.

[Dawnstar]

1 hour ago, Silke H said:

@Dawnstar I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to take any photos down, I just pointed you to my little series I had also shared in case it had been overlooked

 

Sorry, I thought that was what was meant. I can't now reinstate my photos as it's beyond the time I could edit my post.

[Jan McNulty]

15 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

Sorry, I thought that was what was meant. I can't now reinstate my photos as it's beyond the time I could edit my post.

But you could do a new post with them please?

[Richard LH]

3 hours ago, JennyTaylor said:

 

My attention has been caught by Tom Whitehead in all the roles he has played in this run.

I agree...I find him well worth watching in all his different character roles. There always seem to be a  number of difficulties for whoever plays Gamache, to do with the costume, or finding his coins, or hankie,  or handling the sword, as well having to endure all the planned indignities of the role. Last night it looked as if Tom might have hit his head on the table in his fall as a result of the fish-slapping incident..and later he managed to bend his scabbard at some point during his "duel" with the Don. He managed it all with great aplomb and humour.

 

[Dawnstar]

1 hour ago, Jan McNulty said:

But you could do a new post with them please?

 

Thank you. Post re-created below.

 

4 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

I don't know about Muntagirov giving a flower to Nunez but on Saturday when Bracewell gave one to Kaneko (which was the first time I'd seen it done by both dancers) I think it was spontaneous, as when I spoke to him afterwards & said it was nice to see flower giving now going both ways he said that he'd seen her getting a flower out of her bouquets & then decided to do the same himself. In fact looking back at my curtain call photos it looks as though Bracewell was hiding the flower behind his back before bringing it out to give to Kaneko!