San Perregrino Posted December 30, 2023 Share Posted December 30, 2023 1 hour ago, FionaM said: I’m wonder why Matthew Ball didn’t partner Mayara. Matthew Ball was in the audience for act 2. Perhaps his head is already in Manon or Meta mode whilst Lukas BB is still in Nutcracker. There’s the possibility that Lukas BB may pick up another couple of shows if Reece Clarke’s injury is more than fleeting. (I hope it isn’t). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted December 30, 2023 Share Posted December 30, 2023 (edited) Well done Lukas! I think Lukas' first appearance that I saw him in (ie his actual first might be a different role at a show I wasn't at) was as St Nicholas, with no dancing but simply walking in and looking tall and grand, throwing sweets to the party children, and walking off. Then he moved on to Arabian, occasionally Waltz of the Flowers, then Mouse King, now Prince. So, you see, even starting out in a walk on part like St Nicholas can lead eventually to great things. 😊 On a completely different note, am I the only one who, post pandemic, misses the restoration of the four child pages who greet Clara and Hans-Peter when they arrive in the Kingdom of the Sweets? (The Waltz of the Flowers men who have replaced them are elegant and dashing, but the pages had beautiful silver costumes with specially designed hats, shoes and little canes, which were all stunning feats of design and craft skills. The child pages- always beautifully performed- made the RB production look unique as most other ballet companies use adults to greet Clara if they such a scene.) Edited December 30, 2023 by Emeralds 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suffolkgal Posted December 30, 2023 Share Posted December 30, 2023 I’m sure there’s all sorts of nuances - number and length of rehearsals for example and the risk of injury. It’s certainly been a bit of a nutcracker Merry go round this season but so lucky we are that so many can step up 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted December 30, 2023 Share Posted December 30, 2023 No, emeralds, you're not. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted December 30, 2023 Share Posted December 30, 2023 I agree about the child pages, @Emeralds I also wish they”d restore the rest of the men in the Arabian dance. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 Yes, it makes the whole visuals of Act II far too cream-coloured, when the Arabian should be Turkish delight-coloured, surely? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pas de Quatre Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 Arabian represents coffee, not Turkish delight. So depends whether you take cream in your coffee or not! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zxDaveM Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 10 hours ago, Sim said: I agree about the child pages, @Emeralds I also wish they”d restore the rest of the men in the Arabian dance. Yes, for the wee lads as pages - but I have to say, I prefer the Arabian as a duet myself! 🙂 And just the two Chinese dancers - just those weirdly horrid cart-wheely steps they do to purge now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob S Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 I love the Arabian dance with just the two dancers but the exit lift is rather heart in the mouth stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 9 minutes ago, Rob S said: I love the Arabian dance with just the two dancers but the exit lift is rather heart in the mouth stuff. It is, but they have always done it in this production. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnePigeon Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 (edited) 12 hours ago, Sim said: I agree about the child pages, @Emeralds I also wish they”d restore the rest of the men in the Arabian dance. I don’t really understand the removal of the other men. I’m assuming it’s because they feel it’s culturally insensitive and some sort of stereotype to portray an Asian woman as a sex worker in a harem, or is it a concern that a woman is being passed around three different men? I personally feel the way it’s danced, as an artistic representation of a harem, is in fact quite empowering to the woman: one woman dancing sensually with three men adoring her and presenting her while she looks like she’s in control is very refreshing. It fits perfectly with the beautiful, sensuous piece of music and the flow and dynamic is lost for me when it’s just a pas de deux. It used to be one of the highlights, but it fell flat for me this time. Edited December 31, 2023 by OnePigeon 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 8 minutes ago, OnePigeon said: I don’t really understand the removal of the other men. I’m assuming it’s because they feel it’s culturally insensitive and some sort of stereotype to portray an Arabian harem, or is it a concern that a woman is being passed around three different men? I personally feel the way it’s danced, as an artistic representation of a harem, is in fact quite empowering to the woman: one woman dancing sensually with three men adoring her and presenting her while she looks like she’s in control is very refreshing. It fits perfectly with the beautiful, sensuous piece of music and the flow and dynamic is lost for me when it’s just a pas de deux. It used to be one of the highlights, but it fell flat for me this time. Well put. I think it is a combination of being scared of portraying stereotypes, and also during Covid it meant that there was less risk of virus spread if you kept it to two dancers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tango Dancer Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 14 minutes ago, OnePigeon said: I don’t really understand the removal of the other men. I’m assuming it’s because they feel it’s culturally insensitive and some sort of stereotype to portray an Asian woman as a sex worker in a harem, or is it a concern that a woman is being passed around three different men? I personally feel the way it’s danced, as an artistic representation of a harem, is in fact quite empowering to the woman: one woman dancing sensually with three men adoring her and presenting her while she looks like she’s in control is very refreshing. It fits perfectly with the beautiful, sensuous piece of music and the flow and dynamic is lost for me when it’s just a pas de deux. It used to be one of the highlights, but it fell flat for me this time. I'd always assumed she was the Queen and they were her eunuchs serving her because she's very much the one in charge of the dance. That said I quite like it as a pas de deux too. As a bad amateur bellydancer I'd say none of it is very authentically "Arabian" despite the usual costuming. No Egyptian / Turkish / Levantine / Emirati dancer dances anything like this and they don't use this music. So it's very much fantasy whichever version you do. I think my favourite version is probably the Bolshoi one which does a pas de deux that really draws on classical Indian hand movements and positioning. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophoife Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 That exit lift! AusBallet always used the biggest hunkiest bloke they had - before he retired (very early) it was nearly always John Paul Idaszak, who in someone's vulgar term was (comparatively, I mean he's a ballet dancer!) "built like a brick outhouse". I shall be interested next December to see if the revamps BRB has made to their Nutcracker carry over to AusBallet. Happily I've found my recording from whenever it was, with Benedicte Bemet as Clara, and it's so fun because virtually all the cadets including Clara's dancing partner are now principals, but so sad as so many of those in solo roles have retired. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnePigeon Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 17 minutes ago, Tango Dancer said: I'd always assumed she was the Queen and they were her eunuchs serving her because she's very much the one in charge of the dance. That said I quite like it as a pas de deux too. As a bad amateur bellydancer I'd say none of it is very authentically "Arabian" despite the usual costuming. No Egyptian / Turkish / Levantine / Emirati dancer dances anything like this and they don't use this music. So it's very much fantasy whichever version you do. I think my favourite version is probably the Bolshoi one which does a pas de deux that really draws on classical Indian hand movements and positioning. Good point. I read it was a harem, but I agree that it isn’t at all clear and it wasn’t necessarily how I interpreted it either as she is so in control and majestic. As you say, it’s not remotely authentic and is a fantasy in a ballet about magic, dreams and toys coming to life, so I don’t personally see the need to change it. I haven’t seen the Bolshoi version, but that sounds really beautiful - I’ll have to seek it out. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 I find the Arabian dance rather too long and boring in its current form.🫢 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 26 minutes ago, Sophoife said: That exit lift! AusBallet always used the biggest hunkiest bloke they had - before he retired (very early) it was nearly always John Paul Idaszak, who in someone's vulgar term was (comparatively, I mean he's a ballet dancer!) "built like a brick outhouse". I shall be interested next December to see if the revamps BRB has made to their Nutcracker carry over to AusBallet. Happily I've found my recording from whenever it was, with Benedicte Bemet as Clara, and it's so fun because virtually all the cadets including Clara's dancing partner are now principals, but so sad as so many of those in solo roles have retired. BRB's Arabian dance this year was a woman and 3 men so business as usual. I've always taken it - because of the way she is carried - that she was the queen and they her eunuchs. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 40 minutes ago, Jan McNulty said: I've always taken it - because of the way she is carried - that she was the queen and they her eunuchs. Yes, me too. Good for BRB. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Perregrino Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, Rob S said: I love the Arabian dance with just the two dancers but the exit lift is rather heart in the mouth stuff. The exit lift and the red run differ depending on who is dancing. Edited December 31, 2023 by PeterS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob S Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 4 hours ago, PeterS said: The exit lift and the red run differ depending on who is dancing. Indeed, Harry Churches seems to favour the safer but still pleasing looking hip hold, while last year Olivia Cowley came on and off perched on Nicol Edmonds' shoulder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linnzi5 Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 (edited) 19 hours ago, Sim said: I agree about the child pages, @Emeralds I also wish they”d restore the rest of the men in the Arabian dance. 7 hours ago, OnePigeon said: I don’t really understand the removal of the other men. I’m assuming it’s because they feel it’s culturally insensitive and some sort of stereotype to portray an Asian woman as a sex worker in a harem, or is it a concern that a woman is being passed around three different men? I personally feel the way it’s danced, as an artistic representation of a harem, is in fact quite empowering to the woman: one woman dancing sensually with three men adoring her and presenting her while she looks like she’s in control is very refreshing. It fits perfectly with the beautiful, sensuous piece of music and the flow and dynamic is lost for me when it’s just a pas de deux. It used to be one of the highlights, but it fell flat for me this time. 6 hours ago, capybara said: I find the Arabian dance rather too long and boring in its current form.🫢 Yes to all of the above. The Arabian Dance was one I loved with three male dancers and the one female. It is boring by comparison, IMO. I wondered if it had been left with one male dancer because of the issues of replacing injured/ill dancers? However, like the reduced snowflakes we saw during Covid (understandably), it really is just not as good in my eyes and I long for the restored, original version. Edited December 31, 2023 by Linnzi5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 8 minutes ago, Linnzi5 said: Yes to all of the above. The Arabian Dance was one I loved with three male dancers and the one female. It is boring by comparison, IMO. I wondered if it had been left with one male dancer because of the issues of replacing injured/ill dancers? However, like the reduced snowflakes we saw during Covid (understandably), it really is just not as good in my eyes and I long for the restored, original version. Or come up to Birmingham and see their production! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellyb Posted December 31, 2023 Share Posted December 31, 2023 Agree about the Arabian dance; with the three men it looks like the woman is in control and the men are her servants whereas I feel that the pas de deux looks more like the man is displaying or offering the woman, pushing her forward to gyrate for the audience ... which I personally find rather less appropriate, though it might just be me! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stucha Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 12 hours ago, Tango Dancer said: I think my favourite version is probably the Bolshoi one which does a pas de deux that really draws on classical Indian hand movements and positioning. I agree completely. Not to mention the wonderful costumes. It is superb and avoids the cringey harem-like vibe 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnS Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 https://www.balletcoforum.com/topic/28783-congratulations-to-ashley-dean-benjamin-ella/?do=findComment&comment=426555 @Rob S posted a fabulous photo of Ashley Dean and Benjamin Ella on the congratulations thread above when they’d been dancing Clara and Hans-Peter in 2022/23. At the curtain call Hans-Peter was looking particularly resplendent wearing his medal and Clara of course had her necklace. I’ve been meaning to ask why in 2023/24 Hans-Peter no longer has his medal in the brief closing scenes when he meets Clara and then Drosselmeyer. I think in one of the performances I saw before Christmas the medal may have fallen off and was retrieved but in the closing scenes, there’s been a decision that Hans-Peter should no longer wear his medal. It’s a break with what I thought had been presented for many years (since the production was first presented?) and I struggle to understand why the change has been made. It also looks very odd as in all the curtain call photos we can clearly see the scuffed mark where the medal had been attached. One of the joys of this production is Clara recognising that she has her necklace and so it wasn’t a dream. But it doesn’t seem as well matched if Hans-Peter’s medal has ‘fallen off’. I’d love to see the medal reinstated and wondered if others agree? 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Perregrino Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 The London New Years Day Parade kicks off at 12.00. www.lnydp.com It might impact access routes to the ROH for 13.30 Nutcracker. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyTaylor Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 55 minutes ago, PeterS said: The London New Years Day Parade kicks off at 12.00. www.lnydp.com It might impact access routes to the ROH for 13.30 Nutcracker. London very quiet when I arrived about half an hour ago. Still waiting for the cast sheet to be published for the 1:30pm performance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zxDaveM Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 Ditto. As an aside, I noticed Manon posters up in most tube stations I passed through, especially the Piccadilly line. Bit like the old days! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 4 minutes ago, JennyTaylor said: London very quiet when I arrived about half an hour ago. Still waiting for the cast sheet to be published for the 1:30pm performance. So am I. I drove in in a record time of 21 minutes! Traffic very light. I wish it were always like this! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Perregrino Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 9 minutes ago, JennyTaylor said: Still waiting for the cast sheet to be published for the 1:30pm performance. 3 minutes ago, Sim said: So am I Who is still standing and able to balance after last nights festivities….? 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 19 minutes ago, zxDaveM said: Ditto. As an aside, I noticed Manon posters up in most tube stations I passed through, especially the Piccadilly line. Bit like the old days! I noticed those as well, @zxDaveM They have been around for some time, and actually on the wall at the back, where commuters will face them while waiting for a train. Also quite clear what they are advertising, makes a change from some sort of meaningless squiggle. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyTaylor Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 Finally, the cast list has appeared - 35 minutes prior to the start! Lots of treats in store 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawnstar Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 (edited) 3 hours ago, JennyTaylor said: Finally, the cast list has appeared - 35 minutes prior to the start! Lots of treats in store The first Nutcracker cast list since 12th December when none of the 5 lead roles are marked as a replacement! ETA I see there are no replacements marked on tonight's cast sheet, even though two of the leads surely are replacements, Acri for Zuchetti & Allnatt for Stock. Also a couple of other oddities on there, including crediting St Nicholas when I don't think any other cast sheet this season has done so. Maybe it's all becoming a bit too much for whichever department is responsible for cast sheet production! Hoping some comments on Annette Buvoli's SPF will appear here soon. I would have loved to have seen her debut but no trains. Edited January 1 by Dawnstar Added 2nd paragraph 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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