Royal Ballet: Rhapsody/Tetractys - The Art of Fugue/Gloria: February 2014

[alison]

Yes, that is the end of Bach's manuscript score.

 

That's comforting to know: I'd assumed it must be.

 

I overall liked Tetractys a lot more last night than I did in the previous performances. I'll mostly put it down to where I was sitting, McGregor always struck me as a choreographer whose work was more enjoyable from the stalls, ideally from as close as possible, and this was the case again.

 

It's interesting that you should say that, A frog: I saw it from stalls circle the first time and actually found it quite palatable, whereas last night I was halfway up the amphitheatre and found it rather less so - it looked rather sparser, and of course some of the dancers were hidden behind the artworks.  I shall be halfway between for the next viewing, so wonder what effect that will have.  OTOH, I still maintain that Infra needs to be seen from above.

 

Photos can be very misleading, sometimes appearing to show a pose where none exists. Seeing it again last night the move in which Nuñez flips over, taps the stage with her toe and flips back takes all of a couple of seconds. Blink and you've missed it.

 

Yes.  When DGV first premiered, John Ross took a marvellous photograph which I really liked of Leanne Benjamin seemingly in a pose across Ed Watson's back.  I looked for it in vain at the first performance, and it wasn't until the second that I realised it wasn't a pose, but that he'd managed to catch her sort of mid-roll across Watson's back.

 

As for the "spatchcocking", I decided last night that it's coincidental where McGregor is concerned: I think what really interests him is the extension of leg(s), rather than what's inbetween them.

[Fonty]

I wonder whether a resident choreographer is a good idea. Maybe the Royal Ballet would attract more variety if it commissioned works from a diversity of choreographers. While choreographers may wish to produce works which are avantgarde in nature they must also take an to account the necessity of getting 'bums on seats'. This type of work will not achieve such an ambition.

 

I guess the RB is damned if it does, and damned if it doesn't.  When the RB has commissioned works from other choreographers, it hasn't been wildly successful either, I don't think?.  Hence the mention of Mr Wordly Wise in another thread, which comes very high on the list of the most bonkers ballets ever seen. 

 

What ballets are there that have been commissioned specifically for the RB since MacMillan died, and are still being performed (leaving out McGregor, as the current resident choreographer, Wheeldon and Scarlett)?

 

I am not knowledgable enough to know the answer, I am sure there are people here who can answer the question. 

[chrischris]

Saw Rhapsody and Art of Fugue last night, although someone told me the tube strike was over I was still uncertain so missed Gloria, anyway it was already 9.20 when I got out, and I couldn't face another 30 minute interval for a 25 minute ballet!

 

 

This is the thing that irritates me most about triple bills.

[bangorballetboy]

 

What ballets are there that have been commissioned specifically for the RB since MacMillan died, and are still being performed (leaving out McGregor, as the current resident choreographer, Wheeldon and Scarlett)?

 

Discounting those three, the only one I can think of that is regularly performed is Still Life at the Penguin Café but that was choreographed whilst MacMillan was still alive.

[alison]

Well, in that case, Tombeaux is still in the reasonably active rep; Alastair Marriott's Sensorium was given a second run a couple of years ago.  I'm sure there must be some more if I had time to give it some thought.

[A frog]

Marriott is not part of the artistic triumvirate, but I'd still count him as part of the Royal Ballet team, has he choreographed for other companies?

Rushes - Fragments of a Love Story had one revival if I remember correctly, and it might be still too early to consider it abandoned.

 

How few choreographers are comissioned was illustrated by the Metamorphosis bill, they were the seven who created new work during Monica Mason's tenure.

[alison]

Minus Christopher Bruce.

[alison]

I've been meaning to comment a little on "Gloria": like Jane S, in her review for DanceTabs (http://dancetabs.com/2014/02/royal-ballet-tetractys-the-art-of-fugue-rhapsody-gloria-london/), I felt it was rather underpowered at the matinee last Saturday. It felt that way from curtain-up, even before the principals had arrived on stage, and I found myself wondering who the corps de ballet dancers in it were, and whether they were predominantly recent recruits and possibly didn't have the "history" of the ballet in their bodies in the way that more-established members of the company might. I am pleased to say that Tuesday night's performance felt a lot stronger all round, and it certainly reached me in the amphitheatre.

 

What I have been rather concerned about, though, is some of the singing: some of it has come over as rather harsh, and I'm not used to that - given that probably at least 50% of the times I've heard it over the last decade have been at performances of the ballet. I caught a performance of it on the radio last night, and then checked with my newly-acquired CD of the work, and neither of those sounded particularly harsh.

[Mary]

There is an interesting review of the triple bill in this weeks' Times Lit Supplement.  Judith Flanders, writing about Rhapsody,  finds that there is noone currently at RB who  has a "virtuoso technique...gobbles up space..brutally demands attention"..."there is a dearth of dazzle".

 

...whereas we all seem to agree that that describes McRae really well...whether we  strongly admire his performances or not!

 

Strange. I do not see how anyone can possibly think this, having seen McRae.

 

 

On the subject of work choreographed for the RB in recent years I can think of one NOT still performed that might perhaps also be mentioned in the Bonkers Ballet thread- C Bruce's Hendrix ballet in which I remember seeing- did I?- Yanowsky..Rojo..and ..?? in hippy wigs cavorting to- big mistake this- Hendrix numbers performed by Nigel Kennedy- (that was the crucial mistake).  I really enjoyed it at the time...

 

What is lacking in most recent pieces is pleasure and fun. Discuss?

[james sinclair]

Yanowsky, Rojo and Chapman?

[helpop]

Gloria was probably my favourite piece of the three tonight - I felt it was much the best choreography and worked best as an overall performance. Acosta gave a very strong performance.

 

As others have mentioned, Steven McCrae was outstanding in Rhapsody.  I do see what people mean about him stealing the show and overpowering the rest of the piece, but that's not a problem for me particularly as Rhapsody didn't wow me, apart from the male solos.  I think if you take away a brilliant performance from the male lead, the remaining piece would be fairly insipid and un-noteworthy, in my opinion.

 

As for Tetractys, with all due respect to the dancers, I thought it was absolutely dire.  The costumes and set design appeared to date from the 80's, and the choreography was so dull and flat.  As a piece, it evoked nothing for me.  Normally in abstract pieces you can work out little stories happening and characters emerging, get a sense of emotion and atmosphere. With this, there was nothing, just half an hour of people making shapes with their bodies in a way which didn't connect with the audience or the other performers.  Skill-level of the dancers aside, it was a standard of production which I would have just about accepted in a young choreographer, just starting out and learning their trade, in a small fringe theatre where I'd paid £5 for entry.  As a piece presented at the Royal Opera House to represent the cream of British modern ballet, it was unforgiveable.

 

I'm considering stopping attending these 3-in-1 programmes.  The length of the intervals compared with length of performance is tiresome, and I'm not convinced they work as a format for the evening.

[Beryl H]

After seeing The Art of Fugue again on Thursday I like it better than LFE and Carbon Life, and would book to see it again, especially with Natalia Osipova and Edward Watson who are an exciting partnership in McGregor. If anything it seemed less "hyper" than normal, perhaps due to the calming influence of the music.  Another one I would like to see again is Qualia.

 

In Rhapsody Steven McRae's technique is out of this world, especially the last section, and although Gloria didn't make quite the same impact it used to Sarah Lamb was a very tragic figure. 

[aileen]

I saw this programme this afternoon. I liked the McGregor quite a lot although it did lose its way a bit in the middle. Osipova was excellent and she and Watson looked very good together. Although McRae dazzled technically in Rhapsody I felt that something was missing. I found Morera a little mannered, although she showed great musicality dancing to a difficult score with little obvious beat. Hamilton was very expressive in Gloria. Watson (I think that it's a bit much expecting him to dance in this immediately after the McGregor) and Hirano did not make as much impact as I would have liked.

[Katie]

Out of the three ballets I saw this afternoon Rhapsody was definitely my favourite.  Steven McRae was amazing, I have enjoyed watching him in everything I have seen him in.  His energy and enthusiasm are palpable.  Overall, it was lovely performance and just beautiful to watch, I felt very sad when it was over.  I thought the pianist really accentuated the mood and is particularly talented.  

Tetractys was ok, I enjoyed it as a spectacle.  I have no idea what was going on, but it was a pleasing enough performance, and it was obvious the level of dedication the dancers gave to each of their roles. 

Gloria didn't really make much of an impression on me. However as I'm not an opera fan, I was surprised how much I loved the Soprano performance, and felt oddly moved.  I thought Edward Watson was very expressive and was left feeling very sombre by the dying moments of the act.

[Shmendrick]

 First triple bill at ROH, slightly mixed feelings.

 

  Rhapsody was lovely and practically worth the ticket price on its own, thought Morera's delicacy was a good contrast to Macrae's dazzle and the corps seemed on top form, thought Romany Pajdak stood out there. 

 

  Not a fan of AoF. Costumes were ugly and unflattering to the dancers and even when they were all on stage together there was no sense of unity among them, from what I could see each group of dancers could've done the same thing in isolation and it wouldn't have affected the dance. Paul Kay stood out though. 

 

   Gloria seemed well-danced but under-powered until the final moments with just Edward Watson, think this is a work that could do with repeated viewings. 

 

     As others have mentioned, how long do the intervals need to be? Half an hour is slightly ridiculous when the works are that or less. 

[Sue Brett]

wanted to put in a good word for Tetractys. Seemingly against all the odds (well all the reviews) I enjoyed it best out of all three pieces. I liked the whole concept: the idea of starting with the music, working with a visual artist (Tauba Auerbach) to bring out its geometry, and reflecting that in the dance. I thought it worked. Michael Berkeley's arrangement of the music was wonderful. Nearly all of the dancing was stunning, particularly the black and white pas de trios with Sarah Lamb. OK, the stage was a bit too dark and the costumes were puzzling, particularly the blue and white smurf-style one. But I was thinking as I watched that this is the way to show young people that ballet is cool. As opposed to Gloria, which actually seemed by contrast very dated, especially the costumes.

Rhapsody was unimpeachable for a male virtuoso piece done fantastically well, but still it had that Sixties aftertaste.

I’m for the current - bring on more McGregor, art and sublime music.  

[zxDaveM]

 

 

     As others have mentioned, how long do the intervals need to be? Half an hour is slightly ridiculous when the works are that or less. 

 

for each ballet they have to: change the flooring, and lets be frank, they HAVE to get that right (to prevent dancer injuries); sometimes change the lighting rigs on the sides of the stage and in the rigging above - especially applies for the neon 'glyphs' for Tetractys; then for Gloria setup the stage drop behind the ramp so they can 'go over the top'. After Rhapsody, they have to clear away the steps section at the back of the stage too. For most 3-act ballets its the same floor with a change of bits of scenery, or they fly out and then in, different cloths and backdrops which don't take a lot of time. Also, the dancers like a few mins on the stage to warm up and run through their spacing etc, once the stage crew have done their thing. All in all, not a 5mins job and is irrespective of how long each ballet runs for - and anyway, gives many folk a good chance of a natter in between  :-)

[mijosh]

And please remember that Sarah Lamb, Edward Watson,Thiago Soares and Stephen McRae are in two of the ballets and do need a little time to breathe between them.

[aileen]

Well, perhaps other dancers should have been cast. I agree that dancing in the McGregor and either Rhapsody or Gloria must have been strenuous but the RB is not a small company and has plenty of other talented dancers who could have taken these roles. I don't feel that a breather for the dancers is a good enough reason for long intervals. McGregor's insistence on having eight principal dancers in his piece obviously made things more difficult.

[Coated]

Overall I liked this triple bill - though it would be nicer if two of the pieces could use the same flooring and different dancers so one of the breaks could be a 10 minute scene changer

 

I loved Gloria, though I'm cheap - give me a choir and I'm practically yours. I really liked Hamilton and Watson as well. Her expression and slow elegant lines worked for me, and I got a strong feeling of a wistful lament from the piece. As mentioned upstream, Watson was very powerful towards the end and I still replay his jump off the precipice over and over in my head.

 

I only saw the other Rhapsody cast once, but between my seat and my 'big-built and spatially unaware' seat neighbour, the whole performance was a bit of a wash-out. Being close to the orchestra pit really worked against the choir and particularly the soprano - she came in very sudden on a few occasions and my head automatically swivelled to the slightly shrill and loud sound, thus losing the immersion in the performance. Towards the end I even found the choir overbearing, but that was due to becoming so aware of the singing instead of having it as the perfect accompaniment to the dancing.

 

In fairness to the Soprano, that didn't seem to happen when I was further away, but she was replaced with someone else at a later performance and I didn't notice any 'shrillness' with her.

 

The one thing I really noticed in the Lamb/Acosta/Soares cast was how incredibly elegant Soares can be. His arms were a piece of Art.

 

The Hay/Hayward Rhapsody just hit the spot for me - there were no technical fireworks a la McRae (as awesome as those are) but the pd2 had such beautiful harmony between Hay and Hayward and like Soares, he has incredibly 'expressive arms'. Hayward blew me away when she bourred on stage, and continued to wow me throughout the piece. I liked the McRae/Morera cast as well for very different reasons, though I wish there'd been more interaction between the two during the performance.

 

Which brings me to Tectractys which is one of those pieces where the sum is very much less than its parts. On the first viewing, I definitely liked it a lot more than the people around me (though they all sat in stony silence, so that wasn't hard to beat)

 

My second viewing was a complete washout - I tried to engage with the 'theory' of the piece and ended up hating the lot

 

At the third viewing I was more focussed on the music and by the 4th performance I found that I really like some individual moves & the performers, but lost attention towards the end and ended up with an accidental nap.

 

Watson and Osipova were amazing to watch, and I'd like to see them paired again in a modern piece. One of the things that stayed with me was her pushing him backwards on stage, for some reason that was a very powerful sequence in its simplicity. I also loved the 'naturalness' of the pdd between Bonelli and Underwood, partially because the coupling on stage did not happen in the traditional way with one of the males ending up doing the solo in the 5-parter, but also because there was something the more quiet movements that has strength and power. I think I would like to see McGregor stepping away a bit from the athletic achievements he can get out of dancers and work more with the relationships between dancers.

Edited February 17, 2014 by Coated

[stephenK]

and anyway, gives many folk a good chance of a natter in between :-)

Exactly, the social aspect is half the fun, sometimes more than half! Wouldn't want it all to be wham, bam, . . .

Edited February 17, 2014 by stephenK

[helpop]

At the third viewing I was more focussed on the music and by the 4th performance I found that I really like some individual moves & the performers, but lost attention towards the end and ended up with an accidental nap.

 

4 performances! I am in awe of your dedication 

[aileen]

I found the soprano fine (from the amphitheatre) at the matinee performance on 15 February. She was a replacement for the soprano who was supposed to be singing.

[Coated]

I found the soprano fine (from the amphitheatre) at the matinee performance on 15 February. She was a replacement for the soprano who was supposed to be singing.

I saw that matinee from the balcony, and it sounded great. The other soprano was fine when I heard her before, so I just think that the bench seats don't work when you have singers in the pit, possibly something about the acoustics. Or maybe she had an off-day last Thursday.

[alison]

Rhapsody was unimpeachable for a male virtuoso piece done fantastically well, but still it had that Sixties aftertaste.

 

Despite the fact that it dates from the 80s?

 

for each ballet they have to: change the flooring, and lets be frank, they HAVE to get that right (to prevent dancer injuries);

 

That reminds me: on Thursday, I think it was, one of the dancers (was it Hinkis?) slipped at what I thought was about the same spot as Watson had stumbled a couple of nights previously.  I hope they're not still having problems with the flooring.

 

And please remember that Sarah Lamb, Edward Watson,Thiago Soares and Stephen McRae are in two of the ballets and do need a little time to breathe between them.

 

More importantly, they need time to get changed, hair done(?) and, in some cases into pretty heavy makeup.

 

Well, perhaps other dancers should have been cast. I agree that dancing in the McGregor and either Rhapsody or Gloria must have been strenuous but the RB is not a small company and has plenty of other talented dancers who could have taken these roles.

 

So, you're advocating taking leading dancers out of established roles just because they have the misfortune to have to dance in two consecutive works?  Plus, although I know everyone has to start somewhere, I'm not convinced that the RB does currently have plenty of suitable dancers available who could replace them to a similar standard.  (And on that point, is it usual for the woman in grey not to change between the casts?  I thought she usually did, although I don't have my old cast sheets around to check them)

 

Being close to the orchestra pit really worked against the choir and particularly the soprano - she came in very sudden on a few occasions and my head automatically swivelled to the slightly shrill and loud sound, thus losing the immersion in the performance. Towards the end I even found the choir overbearing, but that was due to becoming so aware of the singing instead of having it as the perfect accompaniment to the dancing.

 

In fairness to the Soprano, that didn't seem to happen when I was further away, but she was replaced with someone else at a later performance and I didn't notice any 'shrillness' with her.

 

And another "that reminds me": was there a change of singer for the first of the Saturday matinees?  I didn't think the names always matched up with the soprano who took a curtain call, but I could be getting confused.

[aileen]

If there had been two casts for the McGregor piece then non-one would have needed to dance in two consecutive ballets at the dancers could have alternated between the McGregor and Rhapsody or Gloria, as the case may be. Like some others, I'm getting very fed up with the long intervals at the ROH and wonder whether their length is as much to do with selling food and drink and catering than staging.

[Wulff]

I personally have no problem with a 30 minute interval as it gives (just) enough time for all those who want to buy food and/or drink to do so. 20 minutes or less makes the whole process of emptying the auditorium and getting service at the bars a terrible rush, and in fact many people might not get any service at all if they are slow or impeded by others in getting out of the auditorium. Then, of course there is the whole matter of giving the dancers enough time to change costume, make-up etc. Even with a large company like the RB it is not possible in every case to have a completely different cast and corps for each ballet - or act in a full length ballet - nor IMHO would it enable the audience to see the best possible cast in each ballet since there would always have to be a compromise in the availability of individual dancers for particular roles. Finally, because of union rules RB ballet performances - barring accidents - never last longer than 3 hours. On the other hand Russian companies do not operate under such restraints and their performances often last for longer.

[zxDaveM]

 

 

And another "that reminds me": was there a change of singer for the first of the Saturday matinees?  I didn't think the names always matched up with the soprano who took a curtain call, but I could be getting confused.

 

Yes - the original on the cast sheet was unwell, so was replaced. It was announced just before the curtain went up (along with the announcement not to applaud). And no, I don't know her name, its one of those tricky East European type ones (I assume the 'other' one from the run

[zxDaveM]

If there had been two casts for the McGregor piece then non-one would have needed to dance in two consecutive ballets at the dancers could have alternated between the McGregor and Rhapsody or Gloria, as the case may be. Like some others, I'm getting very fed up with the long intervals at the ROH and wonder whether their length is as much to do with selling food and drink and catering than staging.

 

Its staging. Most intervals are 25mins (are only 20mins in long ballets where little has to be done between acts), the extra 5mins for the extra work required to change the stage. If they get used to the changes and can speed up, sometimes the interval length will drop back to 25mins. Sometimes we get sent to our seats and wait for ages whilst they solve an unexpected problem

[Sue Brett]

Alison - the soprano on Saturday was a late change. It was due to be Anna Hovhannisyan. The part was sung by the 'other soprano', Dusic Bijelic. She was very good. 

[Beryl H]

Well I've just had an Email from the ROH, intervals for Sleeping Beauty confirmed as 20 minutes, finishing time 10.25 pm, thank heavens for Union rules!

 

Intervals were only 20 minutes at the ROH in the past, and that was with old-fashioned scenery changing!

[alison]

Intervals were only 20 minutes at the ROH in the past, and that was with old-fashioned scenery changing!

 

Yes, but that was before the restructuring and the consequent serious left-hand bias to the layout of the house.  Now, if you are on the right-hand side it can take at least 5, and nearer 10, minutes to struggle round to where the food and drink and meeting places are.

[GTL]

Are food and drink for all essential mid-performance though, even if all could afford the ROH prices? The Floral Hall could stay open later to offer post-theatre meals and drinks. It just seems amazing after all the refurbishment back-stage in 1999 that the reason should be technical necessity, I can't believe it's because the ROH staff are less competent than those of other venues, or indeed their predecessors pre-1999.

I did see this triple bill by the way, with McCrea/Morera/Ospipova etc/Lamb/Soares/Acosta but the interval thing is all I felt sufficiently inspired to comment on. Main pas de deux aside, I can't work out why I dislike Rhapsody as a piece so much - hectic is the word that sums it up for me. With Tetractys, it was just so hard to see what was happening in the gloom but with brighter lighting I'd give it another try. Gloria was worthwhile, moving and apt for 2014 but for me better as an opener than a closer.

 

P.S. Do many forum members actually choose the right-hand side of the House? ????

Edited February 18, 2014 by Grand Tier Left