billboyd Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 I've always thought Mr Shakespeare's play to be more than a little 'far fetched'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Wall Posted April 22, 2013 Author Share Posted April 22, 2013 A bit like life, huh, billboyd!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Macmillan Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 Amelia: Many thanks - I have not seen that clip before but it's exactly what I had in mind, and it's still so close to the ballroom choreography that something of the kind must have been in Ratmansky's mind as he worked that scene. Simon: Pheromones??? A nice thought, but ....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nottsballetlover Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 I'm glad I made it to the last London performance on Sunday. I enjoyed many elements of the Ratmansky version despite being very attached to MacMillan's. Guillaume Cote and Heather Ogden had me emotionally involved by the end - I shed a few tears! For me though, the stand out performances were Jiri Jelinek's menacing and powerfully danced and acted Tybalt, and Piotr Stanczyk's fabulous Mercutio. The choreography really allowed those characters to come alive and I shed rather more tears at those 2 dying......! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 Yes, I should have mentioned Jiri Jelinek's powerful performance as Tybalt as well. I hope that NBoC won't have left with the impression that the production was universally unappreciated by the critics and audiences alike. In addition to the critics which I mentioned above, I note that Alistair Macaulay was enthusiastic as was the Balletbag reviewer who saw it in Canada. I have also read a great many positive comments on Twitter. For those of us (very many ballet-goers) who have seen MacMillan's version (perhaps many times) Ratmansky's R&J seems a less full-blooded affair. One bit which I really liked was in the first act when the crowd parted to reveal two dead men lying on the ground. It was very effective and a chilling foretaste of the tragedy to come. I liked the greater role for the friar too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 Not everyone is solely used to the Macmillan Aileen, as well as knowing that, NB's and Ashtons I have seen at least 10 other different productions - some good some not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 Janet, that's an incredible number of different productions of R&J that you've seen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAB Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 Janet, that's an incredible number of different productions of R&J that you've seen! It's not really that many when you consider that just about every company has a production of R& J and some actually have two or three. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 Indeed, I've seen 3 productions at both ENB (Ashton, Deane (RAH and proscenium - in fact I remember Tamara Rojo as Juliet when we saw it in Manchester), Nureyev) and Scottish (Cranko (again we saw Tamara Rojo once), North and Pastor). I would have to say my 3 favourite productions are Ashton (ENB), Morricone for NB, and Pastor for SB. Myleast favourite are the Bolshoi (late 1980s), Geneva Ballet and RDB (Neumeier). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Macmillan Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 And there's this highly effective version, for just 11 dancers: http://www.ballet.co.uk/magazines/yr_10/feb10/im_rev_bern_ballet_juliet_and_romeo_1209.htm And to prove it wasn't just me: http://www.ballet.co.uk/magazines/yr_09/nov09/bk_rev_bern_ballet_1009.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 And I've seen a highly ineffective one for around the same number: Schaufuss' "redoing" of that glorious Ashton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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