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English National Ballet 2014-15 season programme


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And finally, in extremis, principals can dance two nights running.

 

Not this role which is physically and mentally very exhausting. Alina is the best Marguerite since Marcia Haydée and I can understand if she grabs every possibility to dance the role, which she performs, I think, on the same level as her Giselle - something you only see every twenty or thirty years as a ballet fan. It is also a role with very difficult lifts, so maybe she has danced with Ovcharenko before or they needed someone not so tall? 

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Alina is the best Marguerite since Marcia Haydée  

 

If that is the case, I feel it most sad that we have not seen her dance such in London where she is as cherished as elsewhere.  Perhaps that could be a gift of restoration/appeasement in approbation of those minds here (and seemingly elsewhere) exercised as well as in answer to that critical light here being fleetingly flashed upon the ENB brand.  I'm certain such would be appreciated.

 

That said I'm sure the thrill of the Summerscales' beam will do much to erase/appease the hurt expressed above tomorrow afternoon.   

Edited by Bruce Wall
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Not this role which is physically and mentally very exhausting. Alina is the best Marguerite since Marcia Haydée and I can understand if she grabs every possibility to dance the role, which she performs, I think, on the same level as her Giselle - something you only see every twenty or thirty years as a ballet fan. It is also a role with very difficult lifts, so maybe she has danced with Ovcharenko before or they needed someone not so tall? 

 

No, Angela, they have never danced together and have just a couple of days to rehearse.

Maybe more than a short dancer, and more than the indisputable best in the role, Neumeier wanted a dancer that can dance it "by herself" and fully deliver it also in the unfortunate case that rehearsals are not very successful. Regarding physical and mental exhaustion, she danced Cranko's Tatiana in two consecutive nights in Hamburg and she was magnificent, and this despite dancing with the ugliest (technically and artistically) Onegin I've ever seen, definitely an obstacle to the performance. So she is a solid asset when you want to be sure that the character is there and at it's best also in the worst possible condition. A pity that Neumeier vision is to stick her in this uncomfortable position also in her future commitments with Hamburg Ballet. But maybe she is happy with this and from stage it seems less awful (I'd recommend to watch a video, in that case).

 

I don't think Neumeier Kameliendame and so his Marguerite have ever been danced in the UK: Cojocaru and Riabko danced the White pdd (maybe not the best as standing alone, if one doesn't know the ballet and cannot add mentally the previous and the following parts) in a gala at the Coli few years ago. It's quite incredible that she has never danced Ashton Marguerite, but sadly the use of Cojocaru in her last few years at the Royal Ballet is overall "quite incredible".

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"And finally, in extremis, principals can dance two nights running."

 

Not this role which is physically and mentally very exhausting.

 

I think we will have to agree to differ. There are many physically and mentally exhausting roles in the rep and dancers never cease to amaze me with their toughness,  resourcefulness, ability to do extra, dance through with desperately painful injury and goodness knows what else. None of this is ideal at all - but then the chosen solution isn't ideal either - other than for Neumeier.

 

 

Alina is the best Marguerite since Marcia Haydée and I can understand if she grabs every possibility to dance the role, which she performs, I think, on the same level as her Giselle - something you only see every twenty or thirty years as a ballet fan.

 

And if she was free at the weekend to do the role that would be terrific. But she wasn't. There are times when we all agree to something and then later find that an even better opportunity comes up. Damn! we say and carry on as originally agreed - the world generally works best with people sticking to their commitments and not letting others down.

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And if she was free at the weekend to do the role that would be terrific. But she wasn't. There are times when we all agree to something and then later find that an even better opportunity comes up. Damn! we say and carry on as originally agreed - the world generally works best with people sticking to their commitments and not letting others down.

 

I'm with you Bruce, but according to her boss (source is available for the moderators if they think it's needed) she wanted to dance MK Swan Lake but she was asked to go to Moscow. That said, I don't think she considered making harakiri at this request.

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I'm with you Bruce, but according to her boss (source is available for the moderators if they think it's needed) she wanted to dance MK Swan Lake but she was asked to go to Moscow. That said, I don't think she considered making harakiri at this request.

It's all very muddy and obtuse - nobody comes out of it well I think.

 

But its happening and we've probably thrashed it to bits. I just hope that if this comes up again there will be pause for thought about the UK audience.

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Bruce, to have one of the other two Bolshoi Marguerites dance the matinee performance on Nov 15 would have meant for Obrastzova to dance the evening perf. of Nov 14 and the matinee on Nov 15, very hard for a three hour ballet where she is on stage most of the time, or for Zakharova dancing both the matinee and the evening on Nov 15. They desperately needed another female principal, I fear. And I think we can agree on the fact that even the great John Neumeier cannot force Alina Cojocaru to cancel a scheduled performance with her home company if she does not agree to do so. He is very self-confident but certainly not the blackmailing type.

 

annamicro, who was the Onegin at Hamburg? Jung? Sounds like him <_<

 

Considering Lady of the Camellias and London, I heard some years ago that the RB wanted to have the ballet which failed because the cost of Jürgen Rose's immensely expensive costumes and sets.

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And I think we can agree on the fact that even the great John Neumeier cannot force Alina Cojocaru to cancel a scheduled performance with her home company if she does not agree to do so.

 

And mainly if her home company agrees to do that; I think the agreement happened above Cojocaru head (not that I think she is going to kill herself for this, as I already wrote).

I do hope the agreement inlcudes something as a compensation. Even though it would not compensate the money spent on flight, train, stays and theatre tickets I have wasted (too upset to come in any case: I don't want to see evening performance neither). But if Neumeier can consider to give the superexpensive Kameliendame for free for a couple of shows and we could see not only Cojocaru but also Rojo as Marguerite...well, I could try to forgive him.

 

Regarding your question...who else? also Othello on Sunday was desperately bad.

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I've booked for abroad and missed the dancer I'd planned to see twice; once due to serious injury and once through pregnancy.  In both cases I went anyway and enjoyed the break, but in these particular set of circumstances it must be very upsetting.

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I've booked for abroad and missed the dancer I'd planned to see twice; once due to serious injury and once through pregnancy.  In both cases I went anyway and enjoyed the break, but in these particular set of circumstances it must be very upsetting.

 

I'm booking from abroad 95% of my ballets and unfortunately I've missed a few times the dancer I booked for (usally for injury or illness, in one case, in Hamburg, for this same reason) and I went anyway with one exception for very peculiar reasons. Today 2 of my top 4 favorite ballerinas were supposed to dance in MK, but this time I'm skipping also the dancer I've booked for in the evening, because I'm too upset to see her dancing tonight.

 

In addition, a friend in Moscow has already reported that Alina was wonderful as Marguerite and so I have something more to regret about...

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I keep asking myself when Neumeier has lost his taste for dancers. But this does not belong here.

 

Not only Neumeier, if a guest dancer can accept such a "partner". Imagine Vishneva being proposed that! But, yes: we are definitely out of topic, sorry to everybody :-)

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As someone who travelled from the North East of England specifically to see Alina I was very disappointed she let us down. I cannot understand why Neumeier could not find another dancer. Paris Opera Ballet has very recently performed it and he has close links with them- he is creating a new version of Song of the Earth for them (world premiere 24 February, 2015)

 

However, Laurretta was outstanding, both as Odette and Odile (she more than rescued herself after an early mistake in the fouettees).

 

I can't help feeling that if the performance had been scheduled for London Alina would have gone ahead with it. It's typical of how regional audiences are treated, second best. In September, at great inconvenience, I travelled to the Sage (Gateshead) to see Inala, partly to see Dane Hurst. But he did not appear, nor did two other dancers named in the programme, including Camille Bracher. There was no announcement, no cast change slip, no notice. This was disrespectful to the dancers who did appear, who had to double up, I presume, to dance extra pieces; and certainly disrespectful to the audience.

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Just noticed Alina is dancing SW on Thursday in Liverpool in place of Elena Glurdjidze. Wonder how many will complain about this.

 

There is no cause for complaint as the situation is very different to the one which has given rise to so much comment above.. It is sad that Elena cannot dance, especially after her absolutely stunning Swanildas recently, but rather nice that Alina can 'pay back' her missed ENB performance, albeit in a different venue.

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