DON QUIXOTE - ROYAL BALLET AUTUMN 2023

[LinMM]

Does anybody know who among current Principals has already danced Lise in Fille.

[Guest oncnp]

13 minutes ago, LinMM said:

Does anybody know who among current Principals has already danced Lise in Fille.

Data base says....Nuñez, Osipova, Hayward (and Choe) 

Edited October 29, 2023 by oncnp

[bangorballetboy]

let’s not forget Sarah Lamb

[Guest oncnp]

4 minutes ago, bangorballetboy said:

let’s not forget Sarah Lamb

Thank you. I only went back to 2010. She danced in 2005/6. 

Edited October 29, 2023 by oncnp

[Sim]

And Anna-Rose showed great promise in the Fanny Essler pdd when she danced it with Marcelino Sambe in a gala.  So much potential in the company for this ballet. It needs to come back, and soon. 

[Swan]

3 hours ago, Sim said:

I agree with the above.  In the case of DonQ, just sit back and let the warm sunshine engulf you.  Add a large dose of sheer joy and happiness and if you leave the theatre with a smile, then you have found everything you were looking for.

I found myself smiling throughout last night’s performance of this crazy ballet and watching all the debuts made it that extra bit special. Congratulations to the debutantes. 👏

 

I was so pleased for Meaghan Grace Hinkis, it was a fabulous night for her and lovely to see so many bouquets presented. I’ve always enjoyed watching Luca Acri and really liked his Basilio characterisation, indeed both dancers seemed to support each other beautifully during the evening. 
 

Did anyone get the chance to chat to the dancers at the stage door? I hope they all went home happy.

 

I’m still quite new to Don Q and am looking forward to the cinema screening now as well as trying to see if I can get to London for one more show…🤔 @Occasional audience member, I’m sure you’ll have a great time.

 

Hope you’re feeling much better today @Dawnstar

[Linnzi5]

4 hours ago, Scheherezade said:

Apologies if my post gave the impression that I thought your review referred to the chemistry between the lead couple rather than their dancing. I didn’t. I thought your post was abundantly clear, although I assumed from your enthusiasm that onstage chemistry was part of the mix too, which is something that, for understandable reasons, I frequently find lacking with real life partners. 

I think it was me who was wondering if 'real life' couples have a different sort of trust and romantic chemistry. I have not seen partners (romantically involved ones) dancing together live, so was curious if it made a particular impression on forum members.

4 hours ago, Sim said:

Looking at some of the comments after my quick review of yesterday's matinee, I'd like to clarify that when I said the lead couple were 'sparking, sizzling and on fire' I was referring to their dancing rather than their chemistry!  They did have lovely chemistry, but no more so than Ball/Naghdi.  As a matter of fact, I think that because Ball/Naghdi have been dancing together for so long, their chemistry is established, natural, deeply-felt and trusting.  I believe this was the first time that Ball/Magri have danced a full three-act ballet together (certainly at the ROH) so of course it wouldn't be quite the same as watching him dance with his regular partner of eight years.  I don't think with DonQ the fact that they are in a personal relationship would make any difference really as it's just a fun, light-hearted ballet.  However....I would love to see them dance one of the Big Three MacMillans or Onegin together:  that would be (for me) where a personal relationship's deep emotions and love could (not necessarily 'would') come to the fore.  

Thanks. This is what I was curious about. Did Ball/Naghdi have less of a 'spark' than Ball/Magri - did the former have a familiar and established trust that the latter did not.  I guess it's in the eye of the beholder anyway. I have only seen Ball/Magri in the Carousel PDD, which I loved. I think Ball/Naghdi are very well suited and are a fabulous pairing. I am looking forward to seeing Ball/Magri together too. 

[FionaM]

Fabulous night of debuts 👏👏👏. I knew of Meaghan and Luca, but none of  the other debuts beforehand.  
 

I thought the lead couple were charming together.  Meaghan in particular seemed to exude poise as though she’d done this many times before, holding poses with aplomb (in all Acts) and knocking out the fouettés at speed with doubles 👏👏👏.  Luca had some lovely slinky moments with the guitar in Act 1 and was hilarious in the act 3 fake death.   
 

I hope they get another chance.  
 

Calvin Richardson was a hoot as Gamache.  Ben Ella as Espada threw in an amazing multiple pirouette in low arabesque and many beautiful split jetes. Suave performance.  I loved it. Isabella Gasparini is always fun and reliable. Perhaps a bit reserved for this usually exuberant role.  Julia Roscoe was lovely as Queen of the Dryads.  Beautifully lyrical in this challenging solo.  
 

A fun night.   I did go to the stage door to say these things.  They were all delighted as was Kevin O’Hare “they all did really well” he said with a big smile. 
 

[Suffolkgal]

23 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I'm both glad & frustrated to hear that. I started having a panic attack just as Mercedes & the matadors entered & after about 10 mins fighting it I had to leave. I'm absolutely livid with myself for missing most of the performance. (Currently on a train fighting to try to control waves of anxiety.)

Don’t be hard on yourself I’m sure we all understand! I’m so stressed about the only Dante Project with WB I can make as it will involve buses and I’ll have to leave at the second interval. Just waiting for the next strike! Suffolk is not far from London but honestly public transport can be a struggle. I hope you feel better now and you know we are all so very sorry this happened 

[art_enthusiast]

5 hours ago, Sim said:

And Anna-Rose showed great promise in the Fanny Essler pdd when she danced it with Marcelino Sambe in a gala.  So much potential in the company for this ballet. It needs to come back, and soon. 

 

Yes, and in the recent instalment of the "Spotlight On..." series on ROH stream, Marcelino Sambé mentions that Fille was one of the first full length ballets he performed, with Francesca Hayward, and speaks about how much he loves the Ashton style.

 

Maybe that's a hint! 

[Swan]

1 hour ago, FionaM said:

A fun night.   I did go to the stage door to say these things.  They were all delighted as was Kevin O’Hare “they all did really well” he said with a big smile. 
 

So pleased to hear that, really happy for them all. 😍

[Henry]

May I complain about the Make-up Department at ROH? 

 

On Saturday's evening performance of Don Q, Luca Acri's (Basilio) hair was curled.  He does not need curls.  The man has great hair.  Why was it curled??  It just looked odd and contrived. 

 

Benjamin Ella (Espada) has a great face.  He does not have cheek bones like Nureyev.  However, he has a great face.  The Make Up department decided to put a dark shade under his cheek bones.  This may work when seen in full face (i.e. looking straight into the mirror).  However, a dancer on stage is very rarely seen full face.  Far more a dancer is seen in profile or 3/4 profile when these dark patches look very strange.  Again it just looks odd and contrived.  

 

This is far from the first time that the Make-up Department had messed up a dancer's face.  Please tell them to stop.  

 

Please check the photos from @robs

Edited October 29, 2023 by Henry

[capybara]

51 minutes ago, Henry said:

On Saturday's evening performance of Don Q, Luca Acri's (Basilio) hair was curled.  He does not need curls.  The man has great hair.  Why was it curled??  It just looked odd and contrived. 

 

@Henry , if you look at Luca’s Instagram account , you will see that the length of his hair varies considerably. If it is long at the moment the hair people probably wanted to stop it flopping all over the place.

Matthew Ball was given curls as well.

 

Unfortunately, the Forum has no influence whatsoever in relation to any ballet company.

 

[Dawnstar]

Thank you again for the many further kind comments.

 

7 hours ago, Linnzi5 said:

I guess it's in the eye of the beholder anyway.

 

I definitely agree with this. Personally I prefer seeing Ball with Magri than with Naghdi because for me knowing the former are a real-life couple makes it (slightly) more enjoyable. However I think this is due to the knowledge more than the actual performances. Stage chemistry is so difficult to quantify anyway.

[Dawnstar]

I've realised that, unless I'm being even more short-sighted than I actually am, that no-one's posted any curtain call photos from Saturday's matinee on here. So I hope it's okay if I seize a fairly rare opportunity and post a few of mine. (If this is too many photos please could someone tell me within the next half an hour so I can delete some of them before the edit time expires.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[bridiem]

Thank you, @Dawnstar! Wonderful photos.

[MAX]

Petite danse afternoon 😉

[Jan McNulty]

Thanks @Dawnstar, beautiful photographs.

[Linnzi5]

Gorgeous photos @Dawnstar - they are stunning! 😀 Thank you!  

[Guest oncnp]

A whole load of amphi seats have appeared for 11 Nov 7 PM

Edited November 1, 2023 by oncnp

[Sim]

3 minutes ago, oncnp said:

A whole load of amphi seats have appeared for 11 Nov 7 PM

How bizarre, after saying it was sold out.  

[bridiem]

ROH ticketing is really like a magical mystery ride nowadays.

[zxDaveM]

48 minutes ago, oncnp said:

A whole load of amphi seats have appeared for 11 Nov 7 PM

 

Sounds like the giveaway didn't work out

The Sound of Music springs to mind:

G: You gave all your dresses to the poor when you entered the abbey?

M: Yes!

G: What about that one? (the one she was wearing)

M: Oh, the poor didn't want this one...

[San Perregrino]

1 hour ago, zxDaveM said:

 

Sounds like the giveaway didn't work out

 Was there a ‘give away’ ? It wasn’t on my radar

[Scheherezade]

And we are still in the dark as to what’s supposed to be happening on 7 November. Less than a week now and not a dicky bird…

[Emeralds]

Looks like 2 groups changed their minds  or couldn't come. Oddly enough, the tickets are all £67 each in the amphi, in 2 bunches (2 or 3 rows together), one on the left, one on the right. I mean, I was searching for tickets for Meghan Grace Hinkis and Luca Acri's Don Q, guys, but I only need 2 seats, not over 25....lol. 

Edited November 1, 2023 by Emeralds

[Sim]

Oh my….Fumi’s fabulous fouettés!  😱

 

Oh my…Fumi and Will are the perfect partnership!

 

Another sublime performance from them tonight!  Sigh.  😍

 

 

[BeauxArts]

They truly have the magic chemistry.

[bridiem]

I really only have one comment about tonight's performance, which is that I don't think it was Fumi Kaneko performing down there in Act 3 - it was some sort of AI-generated entity, programmed to do fouettes of a quality and speed that would be impossible for a real human being. A word of advice for the RB: if they want this sort of thing to be plausible, they should tone it down a bit next time. I mean you couldn't even see 'her' by the end - 'she' was just a blur, spinning faster and faster and still in perfect time to the music. Really - do they think we were born yesterday?!

[alison]

23 minutes ago, Sim said:

Oh my….Fumi’s fabulous fouettés!  😱

😍

 

Indeed.

 

2 minutes ago, bridiem said:

I really only have one comment about tonight's performance, which is that I don't think it was Fumi Kaneko performing down there in Act 3 - it was some sort of AI-generated entity, programmed to do fouettes of a quality and speed that would be impossible for a real human being. A word of advice for the RB: if they want this sort of thing to be plausible, they should tone it down a bit next time. I mean you couldn't even see 'her' by the end - 'she' was just a blur, spinning faster and faster and still in perfect time to the music. Really - do they think we were born yesterday?!

 

Lol 

[Jake]

Circumstances have prevented any visits to Covent Garden for the past 12 months (and allowed only one since covid), but withdrawal symptoms finally set in this week and when one single nice seat suddenly appeared on the plan for tonight’s Don Q with Kaneko and Bracewell, temptation proved too much in spite of the scary price. You only live once!

Glad I succumbed as Fumi (if I may be so bold) surpassed my very high expectations with her sheer joy and presence, not to mention the fastest fouettés I’ve ever seen.

Lovely chemistry with the always elegant and clean lined William who I felt came into his own in the final act with a beautiful pas de deux and an appealingly nonchalant approach to the final fireworks.

Special mention for James Hay and his deliciously petulant Gamache.

Is it just me for whom the windmill/gypsy sequence doesn’t really work? No reflection on this particular performance - feel the same every time I see it. But more than compensated for by the gorgeousness that follows immediately - thank you to Fumi, Hanna Park and Ashley Dean.

Will be fun to compare with Tuesday’s trip to the cinema - more high expectations!

Thanks as ever to the whole team for enabling us all to escape from grim reality!

 

 

[Linnzi5]

54 minutes ago, Sim said:

Oh my….Fumi’s fabulous fouettés!  😱

I was stunned. I thought they were brilliant the last two occasions I saw them, but tonight they were absolutely breathtaking. I was so impressed!

54 minutes ago, Sim said:

Oh my…Fumi and Will are the perfect partnership!

They really are - they just are so beautiful together and at times so sweet and funny! 😍

54 minutes ago, Sim said:

Another sublime performance from them tonight!  Sigh.  😍

 

 

It was lovely.

44 minutes ago, BeauxArts said:

They truly have the magic chemistry.

I agree.

33 minutes ago, bridiem said:

I really only have one comment about tonight's performance, which is that I don't think it was Fumi Kaneko performing down there in Act 3 - it was some sort of AI-generated entity, programmed to do fouettes of a quality and speed that would be impossible for a real human being. A word of advice for the RB: if they want this sort of thing to be plausible, they should tone it down a bit next time. I mean you couldn't even see 'her' by the end - 'she' was just a blur, spinning faster and faster and still in perfect time to the music. Really - do they think we were born yesterday?!

🤣 I know what you mean! 

 

PS. I wasn't being rude tonight -  I didn't realise anyone was going to be at ROH or I would have popped in the intervals to say hello. Sorry  

 

Edit:

Also, I was sitting at the front tonight which probably a bit too near the stage for my liking. However, did I manage to get a decent photo of anyone? Even though they were literally a few metres away? No I didn't! I am the worst camerawoman in the world!

 

On the plus side, I had the best view of the stage - totally unimpeded and I'm short! Though I got an amazing view of Will and Fumi's facial expressions (seriously, they just were wonderfully stunningly gorgeous or so funny and my heart just melted!), I did find it tricky to see the odd bit of footwork completely - occasionally, the bottom of the point shoes were just a bit high for me to see though it was only once or twice, fortunately. Something for me to note when I next experiment with different seat choices! I'm thinking maybe in the future I should sit a bit further back. But it was worth it to see the interaction between Will and Fumi. 

 

I was also impressed with Leticia Dias tonight as well as everyone else. Joseph Sissens always stands out for me.  

Edited November 4, 2023 by Linnzi5

[Rob S]