Royal Ballet: La Fille mal gardée, Spring 2015

[hfbrew]

BRB fans over the past years to see two particularly wonderful Simones in (now retired) David Morse and Michael O'Hare. Rory Mackay and James Barton were also excellent. None of them ever shied away from hitting the dancers with the veg and we also got the point about the plant pot!

Janet, I once saw Michael O'Hare accidently throw the wig as well as the bonnet at Colas (Im afraid Ive forgotten who was in that role that evening.) The looks on their faces were priceless!

[MAB]

Not sure what the rules are about mentioning another ballet forum, the moderators can remove if inappropriate.

 

Over on the French site Dansomanie, there are two pages of debate already about the second revival of Fille and it is very clear that the French admire and appreciate Ashton, certainly that is borne out by the unusually lengthy applause that greeted both the first run and the revival both of which I went to.  Note the reference to the technical difficulties.

 

http://www.forum-dansomanie.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7095

[alison]

I don't think there's any particular problem with linking to Dansomanie, MAB, except they do have this habit of writing in French

[Melody]

Talking about the technical difficulties of Ashton's choreography, I was watching that series on YouTube about Ballet West (the American company, not the Scottish one) as they were rehearsing Cinderella with Wendy Ellis Somes, and at one point one of the dancers said something like "this Ashton stuff is HARD" in a tone of voice that suggested some surprise. I gather they thought it'd be pretty trivial until they were faced with the reality of the speed and precision that was being demanded.

Edited May 2, 2015 by Melody

[Fonty]

Why are dancers so surprised?

 

Is it because Ashton doesn't tend to go in for showy, flashy choreography with obvious show stopping moves?  Or that the steps do not test the human body to the limit of its range of movement?

 

I would really be interested to know why they are startled when they begin to rehearse.

[aileen]

I saw yesterday's matinee. It's possible that my enjoyment was slightly marred by my stony faced daughter (who did not find the ballet funny and declared the humour 'middle aged') but, for me, the performance didn't quite take off. Marquez's characterisation was spot on (the word 'wayward' was certainly apt) but she and Muntagirov didn't really gel for some reason. He did seem too tall for her and her feistiness rather over-powered his more gentle 'adorable boyfriend' persona. Marquez is a natural Lise, with her quick light jump, but looked a bit tense at times. Whitehead's Simone was too pantomime dame for me. Even Peregrine seemed a bit out of sorts: he only did one hoof movement.

 

Is my memory playing tricks? Was the bowl solo missing yesterday afternoon?

[Balletfanp]

I was also there. Muntagirov was as delightful as ever but I agree they weren't an ideal partnership both with the height difference (although technically they both made little of it) or chemistry-wise. They weren't bad together, just that they didn't have the spark I saw on opening night between Muntagirov and Morera. I enjoyed Marquez very much though and thought she was a lovely Lise. She did give Muntagirov a big spontaneous kiss at the curtain call so she must have been happy enough with how it went! And there were moments where they were really lovely together, such as when he comforted her after her embarrassment over the "When we are married" mime.

 

In all fairness, as well, he was only announced as her replacement Colas a couple of weeks ago, and he has been doing galas elsewhere during that time. They must have had very limited time to rehearse together, and it's not even as if they have danced together before. All things considered, a really good performance.

[Balletfanp]

Oh, and I agree about Whitehead. Tuckett I found hilarious, whereas Whitehead raised a smile but no more. The clog dance shenanigans with all the slipping and sliding looked carefully rehearsed (it is, of course!), but with Tuckett it all seemed spontaneous, as well as chaotic and a bit dangerous - as it should be! With his perfect facial expressions and comic timing he made a wonderful Simone. Whitehead didn't quite do it for me

[FLOSS]

Don't you think that the reason why so many young dancers are are surprised at the difficulty that Ashton's choreography presents is that everyone"KNOWS"that technique has improved so much in the last thirty years so it comes as a shock to discover that something that old is technically challenging. I suspect that it is challenging because it uses the whole body with torso,arms and legs not always in accord,it is very exposed and requires tremendous stamina. Francesca Hayward gave a demonstration of a very short section of the ballerina's solo from Rhapsody at an Ashton event at the RBS. It was before Hayward had really started learning it. Collier gave her a very short section and when Hayward had finished she simply said "It's really hard".

 

The fact that it looks so simple and has no obvious bravura display must lead to idea that it must be easy to perform. McRae said something along those lines when he spoke to the Ballet Association. He said that when he was told that he was being cast in Symphonic Variations he looked at the recording and then was puzzled when everyone told him how difficult it was to dance.It is only nineteen minutes after all. His words were to the effect that the experience of dancing it showed how right they had been and how inaccurate his initial assessment of its difficulty had been.Then there is Sylvia which some people on this forum thought could easily be converted into a two act work because act two is so short. Yanowsky said it is exhausting because it is like performing in three different ballets in one evening. I think that she said that she was numb from the knees down in the last act. Then reverting to Symphonic there is the story told by Antoinette Sibley of two dancers appearing in the ballet for the first time coming to her and asking whether the pianist could slow the music during rehearsal because it was obviously being played too fast. They needed it to be slowed so they could point their feet. Her answer was that the music was being played at the speed that they would be dancing in performance and that as far as pointing their feet was concerned at that point in the ballet you could not feel your legs.

 

I often think that it is the fact that MacMillan's works do occasionally let the audience see that ballet is difficult is one of the reasons why dancers seem to prefer his works to Ashton's. After all who wants to exhaust themselves performing a role like Palemon which is all partnering when they can be certain that a significant part of the audience will leave the theatre thinking that they did nothing?It's almost as bad as dancing the poet in Les Sylphides who clearly does nothing unless of course he fails to get the "nothing2 that he is doing right.

[Lynette H]

I always think that the flute boy should get a credit in the cast list but it seems he doesn't. Can the sharp eyed among you report on who our flute boys have been in this run ? 

[Bluebird]

I always think that the flute boy should get a credit in the cast list but it seems he doesn't. Can the sharp eyed among you report on who our flute boys have been in this run ? 

.  

Luca Acri, Marcelino Sambé and David Yudes.  I think that's all but I'm happy to be corrected if there were more.

[Sim]

The first time I ever noticed James Hay was as flute boy.  It often seems to be a stepping stone to Alain!  Bluebird, I can't think of any other than those three.

[Melody]

Why are dancers so surprised?

 

Is it because Ashton doesn't tend to go in for showy, flashy choreography with obvious show stopping moves?  Or that the steps do not test the human body to the limit of its range of movement?

 

I would really be interested to know why they are startled when they begin to rehearse.

 

I think, as FLOSS said, the thing is that it doesn't look difficult and so they're surprised to find that it actually is difficult. Maybe these days the dancers are so used to choreography that's danced in a way that sort of says "look at how easily I'm doing this very difficult choreography" that they're nearly as fooled as the rest of us by choreography that has to look genuinely effortless when it really isn't. Plus I wonder if Ashton just has a reputation for being a bit lightweight because his ballets don't tend to have a lot of high drama to them, and that translates somehow to expectations about the difficulty level (sort of like the way people tend to dismiss Sullivan's music as trivial, like I mentioned in a previous post).

 

I have a feeling that, as others have also said, it also has to do with the speed at which the ballets need to be danced. There's been such a trend toward slowing down the music so the dancers have time to get their knees in their ears for every extension, and to hold their balances and whatnot, that I think both audiences and dancers seem to think this is the way everything should be done. Add that to the fact that the training these days also seems to de-emphasise speed and precision in favour of extension and balances. And then along comes a choreographer like Ashton or Bournonville, and the dancers just aren't prepared for it.

Edited May 3, 2015 by Melody

[FLOSS]

Aileen did your daughter enlighten you as to what "middle aged" humour is?

 

A scenario dating from the late eighteenth century which has appealed to a large number of choreographers over the years appears to have considerable resilience to me.Perhaps the problem is that the humour in the ballet is the humour of recognition or perhaps it is the story line which no longer has resonance. A plot which depends on a couple attempting to thwart parental marriage plans has a long and glorious history in western theatre. It provides the basic plot line of plays,operas and ballets such as Romeo and Juliet, the Recruiting Officer as well as Fille but it is essentially a conventional plot. It is what the author does with it that is important.

 

Ballet goers and dancers seem to have more problems with the concept of comedy ballets than was once the case. I suspect that in large part this is because so few are performed and even fewer created. If you grow up with the idea that ballet is a serious art form and that its seriousness is demonstrated by the earnest nature of its themes and the challenging nature of its choreography,if you only perform in abstract ballets and serious works then being asked to perform in a comic work must seem like letting the side down.

 

I know that Marion Tait said that when it was announced that BRB were going to revive Pineapple Poll the dancers looked very dubious about it.They did not seem convinced when they were told that they would enjoy performing it and it was some time before they became persuaded that it was a good idea. It sounds odd because at one time a light work was an essential element in a mixed bill. Today however audiences tend to take their ballet going very seriously.

 

I suspect that this shift in taste began as a reflection of the tastes of those in charge of ballet companies rather than audiences suddenly being converted to a monoculture of serious works. It could be that this change in the content of mixed bills has contributed to the idea that Frederick Ashton was essentially the creator of a large number of lightweight choreographic trifles since his are the only lightweight ballets we see with any regularity. It does not seem to be the done thing to add a light touch to a mixed programme unless of course it is an Ashton mixed bill.

 

After some of the mixed bills we have had recently I begin to long for old fashioned triple bills that end with a light ballet like Jazz Calendar,Facade,Mamz'elle Angot,La Boutique Fantasque, The Prospect Before Us,Les Biches and so on.What we get at the moment often seems like the equivalent of a meal in which the same ingredients appear in every course.

 

 

 

 

 

T

[Jan McNulty]

Northern Ballet's mixed programme at the Linbury has 2 light-hearted works included in Little Monsters and A Northern Trilogy.  I found ANT particularly hilarious when we saw it at the Sapphire Gala.

 

I also remember a dress rehearsal of Northern Ballet's A Midsummer Night's Dream to which a number of schools had been invited.  David Nixon explained what was expected before it started and made a great thing about the fact that it was OK (good even) to laugh.

 

I know exactly what you are saying about the makeup of mixed programmes these days though Floss.

[alison]

Why are dancers so surprised?

 

Is it because Ashton doesn't tend to go in for showy, flashy choreography with obvious show stopping moves?  Or that the steps do not test the human body to the limit of its range of movement?

 

Don't you think that the reason why so many young dancers are are surprised at the difficulty that Ashton's choreography presents is that everyone"KNOWS"that technique has improved so much in the last thirty years so it comes as a shock to discover that something that old is technically challenging. I suspect that it is challenging because it uses the whole body with torso,arms and legs not always in accord,it is very exposed and requires tremendous stamina. [snip]

Her answer was that the music was being played at the speed that they would be dancing in performance and that as far as pointing their feet was concerned at that point in the ballet you could not feel your legs.

I was tempted to "LOL" at that, but oh, poor dancers! That must be pretty unpleasant. I notice that in the page from Dansomanie that MAB quoted there are comments about Fille not being technically difficult, as well!

 

He did seem too tall for her and her feistiness rather over-powered his more gentle 'adorable boyfriend' persona.

 

That's true, but still an enjoyable performance. Although from my seat on-high I could see what Muntagirov means about the limited space for his front-of-cloth solo: it definitely looked to me at one point as though he had to pull his leg in because it was getting too close for the drop-cloth (is that the right term?).

 

After all who wants to exhaust themselves performing a role like Palemon which is all partnering when they can be certain that a significant part of the audience will leave the theatre thinking that they did nothing?It's almost as bad as dancing the poet in Les Sylphides who clearly does nothing unless of course he fails to get the "nothing2 that he is doing right.

on both counts.

[alison]

Luca Acri, Marcelino Sambé and David Yudes.  I think that's all but I'm happy to be corrected if there were more.

I note again from the Dansomanie page that the POB does list the flute boy. I also wish they listed Colas' friends as well as Lise's - I'd like to have that for posterity.

 

Other random things which I've picked up on during those performances I *have* seen:

- Kristen McNally looking as though she's been having a whale of a time as one of Lise's friends.

- The stalwarts who appear to have danced the hens for every single performance, as far as I can see.

- The

sneaking-in of Colas

in Act II: care needs to be taken with this, as it's been rather too noticeable even from low down in the amphitheatre on several occasions.

 

[Nina G.]

Melody:......I have a feeling that, as others have also said, it also has to do with the speed at which the ballets need to be danced. There's been such a trend toward slowing down the music so the dancers have time to get their knees in their ears for every extension, and to hold their balances and whatnot, that I think both audiences and dancers seem to think this is the way everything should be done. Add that to the fact that the training these days also seems to de-emphasise speed and precision in favour of extension and balances. And then along comes a choreographer like Ashton or Bournonville, and the dancers just aren't prepared for it.

 

I assume those RB dancers who trained at the Royal Ballet School must find it relatively easy to dance Ashton, since they are already familiar with the style, compared to dancers who trained at the school of POB, ABT, Vaganova, to name a few.  One of the hallmarks of an RBS training is a particular use of the upper body, epaulement and speedy footwork.

[aileen]

FLOSS, I believe that by 'middle aged' humour my daughter (who is a teenager) means pantomime dames, slapstick (eg Simone throwing things and pretending to smack her adult daughter and Colas jumping out from the pile of corn sheaves) and Frank Spencerish characters dancing in a 'funny' way (Alain). What people find humorous is very individual and subjective. Clearly, many ballet goers find Fille funny but my daughter is not one of them. Yesterday, I personally found the humour of Simone and Alain too broadly drawn. For me, Kay's Alain had more pathos which leavened the humour; without the pathos the character slips into caricature and is a bit unpalatable (for me).

[MAB]

Alison, in Paris they do list Colas's friends, not only that, 'Les Villageois' also get listed - just checked the cast sheet for last time I went.

[Mary]

FLOSS, I believe that by 'middle aged' humour my daughter (who is a teenager) means pantomime dames, slapstick (eg Simone throwing things and pretending to smack her adult daughter and Colas jumping out from the pile of corn sheaves) and Frank Spencerish characters dancing in a 'funny' way (Alain). What people find humorous is very individual and subjective. Clearly, many ballet goers find Fille funny but my daughter is not one of them. Yesterday, I personally found the humour of Simone and Alain too broadly drawn. For me, Kay's Alain had more pathos which leavened the humour; without the pathos the character slips into caricature and is a bit unpalatable (for me).

 

I rather agree about Alain- every time I see Fille I feel more uncomfortable with this character's portrayal as someone to laugh at rather than with. Your mention of Frank Spencer is precisely the point- such a series wouldn't be on TV now as people are a bit more sophisticated and don't think it is so funny to laugh at people with learning difficulties (or whatever problem) . Good thing too!

 

However Paul Kay was the best I had seen and redeemed it somewhat for me. I am very pleased it is Paul Kay on the night of the live screening especially as I am taking a friend who is new to the ballet.

i admit that for me the humour of the ballet, though lovely in a gentle sort of way isn't the main thing about it. I actually find the whole piece poignant and moving and it always makes me cry.. Something about the nostalgic glow it has, and all the hope and promise of young love.

But then I am middle aged.

[capybara]

Alison, in Paris they do list Colas's friends, not only that, 'Les Villageois' also get listed - just checked the cast sheet for last time I went.

 

I think that the RB tends to minimise the cast sheet nowadays perhaps so as to reduce the number of amendments on separate sheets or via announcements. A pity!

[FLOSS]

One of the problems with Fille as with Cinderella are the travesti roles which seem to be played increasingly broadly. I do wonder sometimes how roles that were clearly intended to be characters rather than caricatures have been allowed to degenerate into broad comedy and slapstick.Widow Simone for example is not part of the British pantomime tradition but part of the performance tradition of the ballet. According to the French version of Wikipedia "..the role is traditionally taken by a man in all versions of the ballet"and a quick look at the video trailer for performances of the reconstructed original version of Fille at Toulouse clearly has a man in the role.

 

Checcetti was a famous Simone and clearly did not play her as anything except a character since Karsavina said of him that when his Simone saw that her plans for Lise's marriage had been dashed his face registered anger,sorrow and regret. That suggests that Cecchetti was in character and acting rather than a performer who had decided to enliven the role of a middle aged woman by adding stage business of his own. Cecchetti's Simone seems far removed from what we see today on the Covent Garden stage not merely by time but by sensibility.

 

Karsavina's account of Cecchetti's performance sounds like one that she observed at close quarters so you might have thought that someone who had been on stage with Ronald Emblem,such as Leslie Collier, might have had some idea about how the role should be played.If she can't remember details of those performances then I am sure that Brenda Last can. The point about Emblem's Simone was that there was no obvious additional stage business any embellishments that he may have added were strictly in character and clearly accepted by Ashton. His Simone was a fully rounded portrayal just like Grant's Alain. I know that there is the slight problem of the current ownership of this ballet but I am surprised that Grant allowed such broad portrayals of Simone.Many of those now dancing Simone did so while he was in charge of revivals. Perhaps I should not be that surprised about the coarsening of the role since I seem to recall that when Grant brought his Canadian company to Covent Garden in, I think, the late seventies there were lots of comments that it did not look quite right.

 

It is almost as if those now responsible for reviving the ballet have forgotten the company's own performance tradition established by Stanley Holden and Ronald Emblem of Simone as a credible character and take their lead from professional dance critics who describe Simone as a pantomime dame.How I wish that those responsible for staging this revival would tell all the dancers cast as Simone to concentrate on characterisation and getting the clog dance right.

 

Perhaps the root cause of the problem lies further in the past than Grant's custodianship of the ballet.In 1970 the Board decided that the Royal Ballet had to reduce its size in order to reduce costs. Perhaps we are still living with the effects of that decision. After all Ashton told John Percival at the time that they were " getting rid of all the character dancers,they won't be able to do my ballets." It remains true that there are a few character dancers in the company. Perhaps it is the shortage of such dancers within the ranks of the company that explains the sometimes less than satisfactory portrayals of some key characters in this ballet.

[Fonty]

After some of the mixed bills we have had recently I begin to long for old fashioned triple bills that end with a light ballet like Jazz Calendar,Facade,Mamz'elle Angot,La Boutique Fantasque, The Prospect Before Us,Les Biches and so on.What we get at the moment often seems like the equivalent of a meal in which the same ingredients appear in every course.

 

 

 

 

 

T

 

 

Oh, me too, Floss.

 

It used to be standard that a triple bill would start with an established ballet which would be a piece of pure, classical dancing.  This would be follwed by something that was either a new work, or one that could perhaps be described as "experimental" (subtext: not everyone's cup of tea).  Then the final would be a cheerful crowd pleaser.

 

 

It makes excellent sense to do this financially, because you could guarantee that you would enjoy  two thirds of the evening.  You might really like the middle section as well, but if you didn't, well, at least you didn't go home feeling that you had wasted your money. 

Edited May 4, 2015 by Fonty

[thewinelake]

Really looking forward to seeing this on Tuesday...

We've got a potential issue that my wife MAY not be able to make it, due to pressures of work. If that happens (and we'll only know on the evening), would the ROH be interested in a last minute ticket return? Or (if I may postulate such an unseemly scenario) are there crowds of people begging for spares outside?!!

[capybara]

Really looking forward to seeing this on Tuesday...

We've got a potential issue that my wife MAY not be able to make it, due to pressures of work. If that happens (and we'll only know on the evening), would the ROH be interested in a last minute ticket return? Or (if I may postulate such an unseemly scenario) are there crowds of people begging for spares outside?!!

 

Ticket returns are accepted up until 7.00pm although there seems to be some leeway if demand dictates. There is often an official queue of people waiting for returns and this is 'managed' by the Box Office.

 

However, I have, on occasion, sold outside the ROH on the night by simply holding tickets in the air. Another ploy used by some is to try to sell to the Day Queue which gathers outside before 10.00am but that would not help you on this occasion.

[zxDaveM]

there is usually a queue (rather than unruly crowds) of folk seeking a return. If you're bold, ask whoever is at the head of the queue if they'd like to trade. Watch out for the security chappies though, as they are not keen on that sort of thing. If less bold, take it to the box office, and they trade it for you, for a charge of £2.

 

Hope your wife DOES make it though!

[LinMM]

Yes please return to the established queue ......INSIDE.....opposite the box office....not outside......unless there is no queue of course!!

 

Usually you approach the first person in the queue and go down the line till you get a taker.

That bit is acceptable.

However once you have a buyer then you must do the transaction outside or at least away from the box office.

 

If you return the ticket to the box office they are usually very good and will offer first to the queue anyway.

 

Can't tell you the number of times have queued on the day and everyone is very polite and orderly.

 

Once I was 1st in the queue and next to me were two Americans .....one was a young man studying Dance over there and the lady with him was mum.

Well about 7.10 two tickets came back .....brought over by the box office ......I just couldn't be mean and not let them BOTH go to the American mother and son .....even though I knew at that time I might not get in. They had never seen the Royal Ballet for real before and I thought well Ive got loads of chances

 

Anyway the lady in the box office that evening said she'd do her utmost best for me ......and she did ......eventually I got a good front Amphi ticket at about 7.20 just about the closest it's ever been.

 

And the ballet was: Fille ....with Nunez and Acosta. I can't tell you now much I enjoyed that performance!!

[Sunrise]

Really looking forward to seeing this on Tuesday...

We've got a potential issue that my wife MAY not be able to make it, due to pressures of work. If that happens (and we'll only know on the evening), would the ROH be interested in a last minute ticket return? Or (if I may postulate such an unseemly scenario) are there crowds of people begging for spares outside?!!

As it's the last performance of Fille in this run, and Osipova too, I think there's a good chance there will be a queue for returns. You could also keep an eye on how well the day tickets sell online. If they are sold out then demand will be pretty high. Hope your wife gets to go anyway ☺

[alison]

I hope your wife can make it, TWL, but if she can't it might be worth remembering the encore screening at various cinemas on Sunday.

[thewinelake]

Well, it looks like she'll not be coming now - mostly due to tiredness following illness over the weekend.

I suppose I'll be returning the one ticket now.

Unless anyone here is interested, that is - It's C44 Amphitheatre Left £51.

I'll check here for interest around lunchtime and if none expressed will call ROH...

[Yaffa]

They just released around 50 tickets, including some standing in the different categories....

[Petunia]

Already looking forward to the cinema broadcast tonight.

I’m very well prepared: for the last few days I’ve been reading the Ashton biography… yesterday evening I just had arrived at the point where the preparations were starting for “Fille” but sadly I fell asleep  .

But I have watched the video with Marquez / McRae several times during the long weekend and while searching youtube also found this clip with Nerina / Blair / Holden / Grant from 1962

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8i5SERjxGY

 

which I find absolutely amazing.

 

Thanks to FLOSS and everybody else who have seen several casts over the span of a few decades I’ve been able to spot quite interesting differences and details I’d never have found out on my own!

 

I haven’t had the chance to see anything by Ashton on stage beside “Fille” (by the then Ballet of the Komische Oper Berlin) but that’s quite long ago and I was not awfully impressed to have remembered much.

 

I hope everybody who goes tonight has a great time – and you might wave to me when you pass the camera at the Paul Hamlyn Hall !