Birmingham Royal Ballet - Prince of the Pagodas - Spring 2014

[Jan McNulty]

The view from North Wales

[nottsballetlover]

Sounds really good! I'll be at the Birmingham hippo matinee on 1 March. Great tip Janet about getting there early!!

[Jan McNulty]

BRB have issued a short video trailer for Pagodas:

 

http://brb.org.uk/pagodas-live-trailer.html

[loveclassics]

Do try to get in a few minutes early as The Fool starts proceedings before the start!  Tzu-Chao Chou and James Barton obviously have some leaway for this prologue.  I loved James unpacking and eating his sushi and Tzu-Chao conducting the orchestra warming up.

 

I've got a couple more performances in Birmingham to look forward to.

 Thanks for this, Janet, I'll definitely get in nice and early.  The more I read of this production the better it sounds.  I'm really looking forward to it and if there are any special offers I may even buy extra tickets to see other casts.  Incidentally, when can we expect to see casting announced for the Coliseum performances?

 

Linda

[Jan McNulty]

For the Lowry it was announced about 10 days before.  There's nothing on the company website for the Birmingham performances yet - I should think that will be sometime next week.

[Sue Brett]

I'm looking forward to seeing this next week. A quick squint at the cast list appears to show lead females roles in short supply - only 2 out of the 10 named roles are for women. Just an observation. Happy that the production will be showcasing the male dancers but I wondered if this has left the women in the company feeling a bit short of opportunities?

[Bruce]

I look forward to hearing what people make of Pagodas now it is in Birmingham.

 

I see from yesterdays DanceLinks that the Telegraphs Mark Monahan gave it 3 stars - the same as Judith Mackrell (Guardian) and Debra Craine (Times). The Telegraph sub-head I think sums it up for me as well:

"David Bintley's version of The Prince of the Pagodas, at Birmingham Hippodrome, has many merits but fails to win over Mark Monahan."

 

I've been meaning to put up my thoughts from the Lowry for a while (Duh), so here goes. Look forward to hearing what others make of Pagodas and its wonderful score.

 

Birmingham Royal Ballet

The Prince of the Pagodas

Salford, Lowry

1 February 2014

 

The Prince of the Pagodas often feels like the complicated and needy child of British Ballet. A glorious custom ballet score by one of our greatest composers (Benjamin Britten), a story ballet (which we adore) and yet two world class choreographers (John Cranko and Kenneth MacMillan) failed to deliver an enduring classic – or anything near it, really. For more of the background to these earlier attempts I’d urge people to read Jann Parry’s review of the last revival of MacMillan’s version – full of insights into the work’s life to-date.

 

So has David Bintley turned it all around in his version for the National Ballet of Japan, recently given its UK premiere by Birmingham Royal Ballet? Well yes and no: if MacMillan’s version was a roller coaster ride of incredibly inventive highs, and tedious lows, Bintley has created a solidly entertaining family work that never bores but never soars to another emotional level, either. It’s not for want of thinking – since 1979 Bintley has looked to do something. He wanted to use all the score if he could but never felt the original story could be made to work. His final solution is to change it from a story based around rival good and evil sisters (Princesses Rose and Epine) with a mysterious Salamander Prince (of the Pagodas) coming to the rescue of the good, to a daughter and evil stepmother (Belle Sakura and Empress Epine) confrontation where the prince is the daughter’s brother – thought to have died as a child but actually changed by a spell into the Salamander Prince. Good wins over evil in both plots, but in Bintley’s the celebration is of brother and sister restoring good governance and a happy family rather then 2 spirits being united in love. Hard to have the big final pdd for siblings doing the right thing really – if Bintley clearly feels otherwise. It’s a shame because for much of the ballet one is wafted along by confident, pacy storytelling, well supported by the music and solid classical movement. It doesn’t stick out as tough music on top of a tough ballet and that’s a huge accomplishment in many respects.

 

Bintley sets his action in Japan with all its myths and imagery to the fore. As earlier, there are still 4 unsuitable Kings (from USA, Russia, Africa and the Orient) looking for the daughter’s hand, the Emperor/King is hugely doddery and the Fool is still there. In fact the fool rather sets the tone on this child-friendly production, wandering out before the show actually starts and nonchalantly sitting on the edge of the stage looking with interest into the orchestra pit and then out at us, pointing and waving at various members of the audience. And at the close of the work Bintley cleverly ends with the Fool back above the pit – all our journeys are complete. In between there is much solid storytelling, fighting and the rite of passage for Belle Sakura. I particularly liked the way the Salamander Prince reveals to Sakura that he is her brother in another form – Bintley uses young Elmhurst students to great effect. The act 3 decadence between Epine and the 4 Kings is also earthy – a meaty role for Elisha Willis. Tyrone Singleton (South/Africa) comfortably outshone the other Kings dance-wise – what a jump and stage presence. Leading it all out was Momoko Hirata (Princess Belle Sakuma) and Joseph Caley (Salamander Prince) and they do a fine job, even if the plot does not allow then to sweep each other off their feet. But what I remember more overall are the designs of Rae Smith (think War Horse), inspiring affairs that do more than support the story – they satisfyingly help lead it. The 4 Yokai (supernatural monsters) that keep cropping up are delightfully offbeat, but just part of a colourful cast of sea creatures and other characters who dance in the Act 2 journey through Earth, Air, Fire and Water.

 

Casting my mind back to the MacMillan version, I think of his brilliantly-drawn four Kings dancing solos and with Rose (Sakura here) – chilling movement for acutely observed, flawed, characters. And I think of the slithery Salamander movement for Jonathan Cope (nowhere near echoed here) and the gamelan section and moving of the clouds – it’s all grown-up, dark and seems fresh and vivid even now. With Bintley I don’t remember so much bar a solid family ballet (like the Aladdin that preceded it) and an audience clearly enjoying what is a new and colourful fairy-tale.

 

All up, Bintley has rescued great music from being considered undanceable and it’s a work that will likely endure without anywhere near so many question marks over it as the Royal Ballet’s MacMillan version. But ultimately the score is very grown-up and I hope a darker, more grown-up, ballet can be wrestled from it – it remains a prize worth fighting for.

Edited February 28, 2014 by Bruce

[Ann Williams]

Bruce - many thanks for this thoughtful (and very even-handed) review,  which  has decided me to book for  P of the P when it gets to the Coli.  It will make an interesting contrast to my memories of the curiously unsatisfying MacMillan version.

[Jan McNulty]

A view from the National Student

 

 

I saw the first two performances in Birmingham last week - the Hirata/Caley cast and the Mitzutani/Dingman cast.  After a couple of weeks away from it, I am pleased to say that my initial thoughts have consolidated and I think it is pretty damn good!  Both Momoko Hirata and Miki Mitzutani are sublime as Princess Belle with Joe Caley and Mathias Dingman outstanding as the Salamander Prince.  The final duet for the siblings is just glorious.

 

I know it's silly but my favourite section of the whole ballet is the Sea Urchins, especially when danced by Brandon Lawrence and Tom Rogers - they are totally captivating.

 

The one irritation which, I would guess is to do with the score, is the false endings!!  I've seen the show 7 times now and at every one the audience has thought it was over twice before the ballet actually ended. 

 

I would recommend that everyone goes and gives it a chance because there is so much in it for we ballet lovers to enjoy.  Sadly I can't fit in any more performances but I hope it will be not too long before we can see it again.

[Bruce]

Bruce - many thanks for this thoughtful (and very even-handed) review,  which  has decided me to book for  P of the P when it gets to the Coli.  It will make an interesting contrast to my memories of the curiously unsatisfying MacMillan version.

Glad you are going Ann - much dancin and nice visuals. Bintley did dark work in Edward II and I rather wish he had gone down that route again with Pagodas. But perhaps it would not have been comissioned by Tokyo then, or indeed sell as well as a family ballet. Anyway do say what you think after you have seen it!

[Two Pigeons]

I have just seen two casts for this work. On Thursday I saw the Japanese guests artists and they were exquisite. It is probably over 20 years since I saw the MacMillan version. I was less than keen on the score then but I was amazed how much of it came back to me this time round. I cannot say that this is a ballet I would choose to see very often but I found this version easier to understand onnthe second viewing.

 

I really enjoyed Jenna Roberts and Will Bracewell as the lead siblings, and Will again the previous night when he was the sinuous King of the East. Epine like so many baddies had all the best frocks, not least the drop dead gorgeous purple number in the last act. In the part Celine Gittens looked beautiful but I never really got the idea that she was evil. On the other hand Samara Downs was evil personified and just terrific in the role. For the second time in two weeks she really stood out for me.

 

The men have greater opportunities for individual roles and I would single out Rory McKay as The Emperor, Kit Holder, James Barton and, especially, Brandon Lawrence as the Kings of the East,

West and South respectively.

Apart from the two leads there is very little chance for the girls to shine.

[alison]

Nothing's changed there, then.

[nottsballetlover]

I saw yesterday's matinee of Prince of the Pagodas in Birmingham yesterday and it was a really enjoyable ballet overall with a lot to like. It did not have me in tears of utter joy, as BRB's Slaughter on Tenth Avenue reduced me to last Saturday afternoon, but there was plenty fabulous choreography danced by a superb cast all round. It was Hirata and Dingman dancing Belle and Salamander, with Elisha Willis as the evil stepmother. All danced wonderfully well with a great supporting cast of the 4 kings and the remaining fantastical creatures etc. I loved the costumes, sets and lighting - they looked stunning from the front circle. Huge amount of smoke though, which must have been tough for the performers, as it reached the circle making a lot of the audience splutter! 

 

I loved Britten's Balinese gamelan inspired score and the section in the ballet where they have the Balinese ladies took me right back to a holiday a few years ago in Bali, where I went to see a show of Balinese dancing. Bintley very cleverly mixes the 2 forms of dance - ballet and traditional Balinese, to excellent effect. 

 

Anyway, fine performances, what a company on top form right now. I agree with Bruce above though that there was something a bit 'odd' about a final classical PDD of 2 siblings, rather than 2 lovers....Not sure that worked for me!

[2dancersmum]

I also saw the matinee performance yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Hirata in particular stood out for me and Dingman.  Elisha Willis started off a little shaky to me - slightly hindered by her costume but that was only at the start.  Favourite characters were the seahorses and the flames and as an added bonus the flame dance was taught to my DD at the Insight day today.

[Sue Brett]

Sorry for the late review but I saw the production on Wednesday evening and wanted to put in a word, especially for Yaoqian Shang who danced Belle and guest dancer Yasuo Atsuji as the Salamander Prince. My initial heart-sink moment – I love to see familiar BRB dancers and did not recognise these names at all, but Yaoqian Shang was just wonderful. She must be very young. She joined the company as an Artist last year and has little on her CV, so it must have been quite special for her to be in the lead. She was sweet, light, lyrical, precise and had great charm. Her girlishness made her very good in the sister role. I thought this worked very well and loved the fight in the final scene when they brother and sister take up arms against the Kings.

 

Yasuo was also fantastic – transforming into a silent salamander with fantastically quick movement. I enjoyed the production’s blend of that contemporary movement with the full classical pdds. I'd also mention Kit Holder as a hilarious King of the West and a truly mesmerising King of the East by William Bracewell.

 

We also saw Lewis Turner as the Fool – quite possibly his first time in such a prominent role. I'm not sure the teasing prologue worked very well, but that is a hard act to pull off, as ‘pre-match’ entertaining for a puzzled audience. Yet he grew wonderfully into the role and his accompaniment of the ailing emperor was very touching.

I am not really a fan of Britten's music 'neat' - but love to see it interpreted and there was some amazing stuff in there for the music lover, viz the trumpet fanfare played from one of the boxes in the theatre - gloriously thrilling and complex.

I am surprised by the lukewarm responses to this production - it is gorgeous to look at and its Japanese/anime aesthetic would appeal very widely. All in all it was a great evening at BRB revelling yet again in their huge, infectious and joyous spirit. Couldn’t agree more with BristolBillyBob in his review of Three of A Kind. I couldn’t imagine RB carrying this production off at all – it is a true BRB piece in all its joie de vivre.

And I am delighted to have seen Yaoqian Shang. She was swamped with four bouquets at the end and I am sure she is a future star. I would be very interested in what Balletco experts think and I hope many of you get the chance to see her. 

[capybara]

 

And I am delighted to have seen Yaoqian Shang. She was swamped with four bouquets at the end and I am sure she is a future star. I would be very interested in what Balletco experts think and I hope many of you get the chance to see her. 

 

Lucky you to have see Yaoqian Shang.

 

Some of us were fortunate  to have seen her in class during her first week at the RBS in January 2011 and she looked to be a future star even then. She has also featured in many RBS performances since. I'm hoping that she will dance the lead in London.

[alison]

I've never seen her, but have heard and read very good things of her.  But that she should already be given a lead in a full-length ballet really says something, I presume.

[Jan McNulty]

Sorry for the late review but I saw the production on Wednesday evening and wanted to put in a word, especially for Yaoqian Shang who danced Belle and guest dancer Yasuo Atsuji as the Salamander Prince. My initial heart-sink moment – I love to see familiar BRB dancers and did not recognise these names at all, but Yaoqian Shang was just wonderful. She must be very young. She joined the company as an Artist last year and has little on her CV, so it must have been quite special for her to be in the lead. She was sweet, light, lyrical, precise and had great charm. Her girlishness made her very good in the sister role. I thought this worked very well and loved the fight in the final scene when they brother and sister take up arms against the Kings.

 

Yasuo was also fantastic – transforming into a silent salamander with fantastically quick movement. I enjoyed the production’s blend of that contemporary movement with the full classical pdds. I'd also mention Kit Holder as a hilarious King of the West and a truly mesmerising King of the East by William Bracewell.

 

We also saw Lewis Turner as the Fool – quite possibly his first time in such a prominent role. I'm not sure the teasing prologue worked very well, but that is a hard act to pull off, as ‘pre-match’ entertaining for a puzzled audience. Yet he grew wonderfully into the role and his accompaniment of the ailing emperor was very touching.

I am not really a fan of Britten's music 'neat' - but love to see it interpreted and there was some amazing stuff in there for the music lover, viz the trumpet fanfare played from one of the boxes in the theatre - gloriously thrilling and complex.

I am surprised by the lukewarm responses to this production - it is gorgeous to look at and its Japanese/anime aesthetic would appeal very widely. All in all it was a great evening at BRB revelling yet again in their huge, infectious and joyous spirit. Couldn’t agree more with BristolBillyBob in his review of Three of A Kind. I couldn’t imagine RB carrying this production off at all – it is a true BRB piece in all its joie de vivre.

And I am delighted to have seen Yaoqian Shang. She was swamped with four bouquets at the end and I am sure she is a future star. I would be very interested in what Balletco experts think and I hope many of you get the chance to see her. 

 

 

Yasuo is a full member of the company, not a guest artist.  He was with BRB for several years before moving to David Bintley's company in Japan.  He came back last Autumn, much to the joy of his many fans.

 

A nice interview with him was published on the BRB website last week.

 

Apparently David Bintley wanted a very young look for Princess Belle Sakura hence him giving this wonderful opportunity to Miki Mitzutani and Yaoquian Shang.  I couldn't get to see Yaoquin but Miki certainly stepped up to the mark.  Both Momoko Hirata and Jenna Roberts were absolutely tremendous too.

[Tony Newcombe]

Casting for Coliseum is now posted on BRB website

[Bluebird]

Thanks, Tony.  I've copied and pasted it below (edited to try to correct format)

 

 

26 March 2014 7:30 pm   

 

Princess Belle Sakura:  Momoko Hirata
The Salamander Prince:  Joseph Caley
Empress Epine:  Elisha Willis
The Emperor:  Rory Mackay
King of the North:  Mathias Dingman
King of the East:  Chi Cao
King of the West:  James Barton
King of the South:  Tyrone Singleton
Court Fool:  Tzu-Chao Chou
Court Official:  Jonathan Payn
Conductor:  Koen Kessels
 

 

27 March 2014 2:00 pm   

 

Princess Belle Sakura:  Yaoqian Shang
The Salamander Prince:  Yasuo Atsuji
Empress Epine:  Delia Mathews
The Emperor:  Jonathan Payn
King of the North:  Kit Holder
King of the East:  Chi Cao
King of the West:  Lachlan Monaghan
King of the South:  Brandon Lawrence
Court Fool:  Lewis Turner
Court Official:  Valentin Olovyannikov
Conductor:  Koen Kessels

 

27 March 2014 7:30 pm      

 

Princess Belle Sakura:  Jenna Roberts
The Salamander Prince:  William Bracewell
Empress Epine:  Samara Downs
The Emperor:  Valentin Olovyannikov
King of the North:  Oliver Till
King of the East:  Tzu-Chao Chou
King of the West:  Feargus Campbell
King of the South:  Tyrone Singleton
Court Fool:  James Barton
Court Official:  Tom Rogers
Conductor:  Paul Murphy

 

28 March 2014 7:30 pm  

   

Princess Belle Sakura:  Miki Mizutani
The Salamander Prince:  Mathias Dingman
Empress Epine:  Céline Gittens
The Emperor:  Jonathan Payn
King of the North:  Oliver Till
King of the East:  William Bracewell
King of the West:  Feargus Campbell
King of the South:  Yasuo Atsuji
Court Fool:  James Barton
Court Official:  Valentin Olovyannikov
Conductor:  Paul Murphy

 

  29 March 2014 2:30 pm  

   

Princess Belle Sakura:  Momoko Hirata
The Salamander Prince:  Joseph Caley
Empress Epine:  Elisha Willis
The Emperor:  Rory Mackay
King of the North:  Mathias Dingman
King of the East:  Chi Cao
King of the West:  James Barton
King of the South:  Tyrone Singleton
Court Fool:  Tzu-Chao Chou
Court Official:  Jonathan Payn
Conductor:  Koen Kessels
 

 

29 March 2014 7:30 pm   

  

Princess Belle Sakura:  Jenna Roberts
The Salamander Prince:  William Bracewell
Empress Epine:  Samara Downs
The Emperor:  Valentin Olovyannikov
King of the North:  Kit Holder
King of the East:  Tzu-Chao Chou
King of the West:  James Barton
King of the South:  Brandon Lawrence
Court Fool:  Lewis Turner
Court Official:  Tom Rogers
Conductor:  Koen Kessels

Edited March 11, 2014 by Bluebird

[BristolBillyBob]

Well, it's been a fortnight since I went to see Prince Of The Pagodas at Birmingham and I've just got the opportunity to get my thoughts down. First thing I'd like to say is that it was genuinely lovely to meet Janet and have a good ol' chin wag with someone who has been a source of great advice and most enjoyable natters over on Twitter since I started following ballet. Hope to see you at more ballets in the future!

 

In essence, I found Prince Of The Pagodas a wonderfully old-school fairytale with genuine magic in places. 

 

The casting I saw had Momoko Hirata as Belle, Elisha Willis as Épine and Joseph Caley and The Salamander Prince.

 

I've never seen Momoko before, but she is exactly my kind of dancer. She has a delicate feather-lightness that suggests she's fabricated out of some sort of space-age pliant polystyrene rather than normal flesh and blood. But on top of Momoko's dancing is her trump card - her acting is immaculate. Hers was a deep and nuanced performance; the acting had a depth to it that balanced trepidation and courage in equal measure, something which really fleshed - or polystyrened? - out the character of Belle. She's already shot to the top of my Coppélia and Giselle wish list.

 

The first act took a little while to get going for me (as they often do for me - maybe it's actually me that takes a while to get going?). I wasn't entirely taken with the four kings. The choreography seemed a bit hamstrung by a slight ponderousness in the score, such that the choreography seemed to be champing at the bit - the kings were waiting for the score rather than flowing with it. I also found the King of the West's slightly camp, larger-than-life character entertaining but a touch incongruous with the feel of the rest of the production. The King of the South, played by Tyrone Singleton, was superb though, his physicality suiting the character perfectly. 

 

Act II was where this production really took off for me. The production design was sensational, each elemental layer of the voyage to Salamanderland filling the stage with colour and detail. The reuse of the kings and Épine was a masterstroke, creating a surreal fever-dream journey that had echoes almost of the benign trippiness of Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory. This whole sequence held a real magic to me, the wide-eyed innocence and courage of Momoko's Belle made this Prince seem like a genuinely old-school fairy tale. It was this act that convinced me that this production could become a classic ballet of the kind that families can all enjoy together at Christmas.

 

The Act II pas de quatre with the young brother and sister - the wonderful Natalie Rooney and Cameron-James Bailey - was incredibly moving. The choreography was simply beautiful and beautifully simple. It reminded me of the lovely pas de trois from Northern Ballet's Beauty And The Beast and a few scenes from their Gatsby. It had a very David Nixon feel to it, balancing beautiful steps and effective storytelling. Momoko and Caley created a real bond between them.

 

A few people on here and on professional reviews have discussed the fact that the Act III grand pas de deux between Belle and her reunited brother lacks the passion that would come with a romantic storyline but I found it quite refreshing and the innocence of it genuinely moving. 

 

The second half of Act III didn't sit too well with me. It just felt like the direction went a bit AWOL and things kind of drifted a touch. Another reviewer (it might have been on here, so do credit yourself if so!) described it as a lot of score left at the end of the plot, and that's exactly how it felt. Also, there were numerous occasions where it felt like the end of the ballet, including more than one moment that actually looked like a curtain call. It was a small miracle that there weren't members of the audience already in their cars queuing to get out of the Arcadian Car Park twenty minutes before the end. 

 

Many seem to find the score to this ballet not to their tastes, but I quite enjoyed it. It has an other-worldly quality where just as you're a bar or two into a fairly standard refrain, an almost atonal note appears out of nowhere, sneakily bundles the melody in a bag when nobody's looking and walks off with it, whistling nonchalantly. And this happens every few seconds. I can quite see how people would find it maddening, but I found it a nice change from the more conventional scores. Variety, spice, life, etc.

 

I know I've commented on the production more than the dancers, that's because I have nothing but love for the dancers, but it's mostly because I think that as a production Prince Of The Pagodas is very close to being a classic for the company. Bintley could well end up being The Man That Saved Pagodas, but it just needs that teeny bit more tweaking. Act III would benefit from either halving in length or having the plot adapted to extend a bit, some of the choreography in Act I could be tightened up.

 

All this being said, though, BRB's Pagodas is already a great show. There's so much more I could write about the beautiful set pieces, Joseph Caley's incredible performance as the Salamander Prince, the amazing costumes for the Prince's cronies, the SEA HORSES! Wow, the sea horses! But for now, I won't bore you any longer than I already have. Bintley's done a cracking job with the ballet, it's a wonderfully fresh feeling old-school fairytale, told beautifully through lovely dancing and stunning production values. An excellent addition to BRB's repertoire.

Edited March 11, 2014 by BristolBillyBob

[mimi'smom]

Just noticed that Groupon are doing tickets for Prince of the Pagoda's at the Coliseum from £26 in case anyone hasn't got their tickets yet (20% off) 

 

http://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/events/gl-curated-by-groupon-events-4/36200251

Edited March 24, 2014 by mimi'smom

[Scheherezade]

For anyone looking for cheaper tickets, individual seats in the boxes can be purchased from £15 upwards by telephoning the box office who, when pressed, admit that they have to hold a number of cheaper tickets to make up for the balcony closure, although they seem singularly reluctant to release this information. Slips seats can also be purchased by telephone and are also cheaper than the seats in the main body of the auditorium. These seats face the stage and are therefore far more comfortable than the ROH slips with a much better view.

[alison]

Thank you, Scheherezade.  I'd heard this from another source, but when I rang the box office the person I spoke to claimed never to have heard of such a thing.  I appreciate why the decision to close the balcony was taken, but the number of similarly-priced seats is so much less than would normally be available that it's been difficult to get hold of any.  (And shouldn't there be some £10 seats somewhere?  I thought the balcony was usually about £10 and £15 for British dance companies?)

[capybara]

I have put a note about half price tickets on the Ticket Offer thread.

 

Was anyone at the show last night? The rehearsal in the afternoon was not in costume but, in any case, one shouldn't comment on the basis of seeing a run-through.

[Scheherezade]

Thank you, Scheherezade.  I'd heard this from another source, but when I rang the box office the person I spoke to claimed never to have heard of such a thing.  I appreciate why the decision to close the balcony was taken, but the number of similarly-priced seats is so much less than would normally be available that it's been difficult to get hold of any.  (And shouldn't there be some £10 seats somewhere?  I thought the balcony was usually about £10 and £15 for British dance companies?)

To be honest, obtaining the information was like getting blood from a stone; I can only imagine that the box office staff have been asked to sell the more expensive tickets where at all possible. After a series of fruitless and unproductive general questions, I asked what seats could be booked that were not available online, and at what prices. I was told boxes and dress circle slips with balcony boxes priced at £15 per seat. I was also told that cheap seats had to be provided to make up for the absence of cheap balcony seats (although presumably not as cheap as £10) and that the view from the balcony boxes was excellent.

[aileen]

I'm still trying to get my head round PoP. I haven't seen the RB's version and so I don't know how the two productions compare. I think that the Japanese setting worked well, but I do think that the score limits the choreography; in particular there is a lack of slower music for the pdds. I found the Prologue and Ac1 a bit dull and there was little corps dancing in this part of the ballet, but things picked up in the subsequent Acts. I found the jester character rather irritating (but then I always do) and, in general, I don't like animal masks. The best bits for me were the cloud and froth dances (gorgeous tutus) in Act 2 and the corps dances and pdds in Act 3. Shang was very impressive as Princess Belle Sakura. It's hard to believe that she only graduated last year. Will this role launch her career as it did Darcey Bussell's?

[Jan McNulty]

I only saw the Macmillan version once when it was firsret done and I absolutely loathed everything about it.  I was not looking forward to David Bintley's version but surprised myself by liking it very much indeed!  When I saw the Macmillan version I had not long been on a holiday to Indonesia and I loved the gamelan.  I didn't notice the influence on the Pagodas score at all but this time it is what made it for me.  It is a very complex score isn't it?  But when I started to notice the different elements I really grew to appreciate it and I love some sections of it.

 

OK I had the benefit of seeing all 5 performances at The Lowry and 2 in Birmingham but I grew to love the court dances in Act 1 and thought the whole scene was set up beautifully for what was to come.  Of the three acts, the middle one was my favourite because I loved the way the corps was used and I was especially besotted with the sea urchins and the sea horses.  I think it is definitely a work that bears repeated viewings.

 

I am so jealous you got to see Shang and Yasuo.  I would like to have come to London for the matinee today to see them but morning train fares during the week made it too expensive to contemplate.  BTW Shang gave a talk to the Friends in Sunderland and was a total delight.

[Tony Newcombe]

I thought Shang was wonderful. Sometime in the future she will surely dance Juliet. Looking forward to that day. Such an expressive dancer with a beautifully secure technique

[Bruce]

Interested in what people think.

 

Clement Crisp thinks 3 stars under headline: "David Bintley’s choreography is the prisoner of Britten’s interminable Pagodas score."

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/dbe17318-b5a3-11e3-81cb-00144feabdc0.html

 

Look forward to seeing it again tonight.

[MAB]

I was really keen to see this but a string of events meant that this week I’d be unlikely to be able to go, however that changed with the news of the Osipova injury, so I (politely) left our tickets at the ROH box office and legged it to the Coliseum instead.

 

As a Britten fan I’d been intrigued by his only ballet for a long time and was delighted when MacMillan decided to resuscitate it, though I was never totally happy about aspects of the story line. As nothing survived of the original Cranko except for a couple of pictures of Beriosova that proved it was indeed a ‘tutu ballet’ it would seem that David Bintley obviously views  it the same way as it was very classical in some places.

 

The actual score is differently ordered and some of the music is cut I think, but the set pieces such as suitors’ dances, salamander’s entrance and final fight remain untouched.  The story line is different to MacMillan’s in that Epine is step-mother rather than sister to the Princess Belle Sakura and the Salamander Prince is Belle’s enchanted brother believed to be dead.  The first act though is remarkably similar to MacMillan’s with Epine anxious to get Belle off her hands to the richest suitor.  The gifts these guys bring are all ecologically or morally unsound:  Prince of the South brings ivory,  Prince of the East brings opium, Prince of the North has an oil well and Prince of the West is Uncle Sam himself with presents of firearms.  They repel the young princess who prefers to escape with the Salamander and his strange entourage to accepting one of the men she despises.

 

Act two is choreographically the strongest act with Bintley at his most inventive as the Princess journeys through air, fire, water, and earth before learning the truth about her brother’s fate.  For me my favourite was the sea sequence with Empress Epine transformed into a squid-lady and accompanied by shivering hairy sea-urchins.  The act ends with a flashback of the children playing happily together before the brother’s transformation by wicked Epine, and the talented children dancing these roles made it genuinely touching.

 

The final act is back to their father’s court where Epine has made the suitor’s regular fixtures whilst the emperor is stricken in both body and mind.  Armed with the truth about her brother’s supposed death, Belle Sakura is prepared to fight for her father but thanks to her love and loyalty her brother is restored to human form to the delight of the emperor whose health returns as he joins his children in seeing off Epine and the suitors.  All ends happily with the court and people celebrating a brighter future to what is for me the finest musical episode in the ballet.

 

Jenny Roberts danced the leading role and had the hard task of being radiantly good, unlike Samara Downs as Epine with the easier job of portraying a bad girl.  Both succeeded magnificently and I particularly admired Ms Robert’s transformation of gentle innocence to ferocious warrior in defence of her family, but the entire cast danced admirably and I’m looking to see if it’s possible to catch the company elsewhere on the current tour.

 

Comparisons with MacMillan are inevitable but there’s room for both versions, the biggest difference is that the Bintley production is one you could take the kids to whereas the MacMillan, much as I admire it, is clearly a ballet for adults.

[Coated]

Despite getting somewhat lost in the first act (This was my first Pagodas, and I hadn't read the synopsis...), I really enjoyed the Prince of Pagodas. The music and dancing did not always work together marvellously, but it really hit its stride in the second act, where the movements of the elements suited Britten's music to a T.

 

I probably had a permanent grin on my face throughout the second act, I loved the seahorses and other creatures and their slightly otherworldly movements that worked beautifully with the ebbs and crescendos of the music. The group scenes were beautifully danced and I was impressed how cohesive the company looked and hope that the RB can get back to that level of 'overall' performance when all the dancers who are currently off come back onto the roster. Kevin O'Hare and Christopher Wheeldon were in the audience when I saw it on Wednesday - hope the marvellous set design for Pagodas and choreography for the 'elements' will give them great ideas for future RB productions.

 

Back for a second helping tonight

[Jan McNulty]

BRB has published a lovely interview with Jenna Roberts in which she talks, inter alia, about Princess Belle Sakura in Pagodas.