Jan McNulty

1 hour ago, bridiem said:

 

But are BRB borrowing the RB sets and costumes for their planned performances? (If the performances go ahead, of course...).

 

As I understand the situation, BRB still uses the RB facilities for producing most sets and costumes (unless the situation has changed in the last year or so).

 

In respect of Don Q, BRB may be using the RB costumes (as RB used BRB's when mounting Two Pigeons) but the RB set would never fit onto the Hippodrome stage.  I don't know if parts of it could be used but I would guess a lot of it would have to be redesigned/remade.

 

Mariana is just lovely in real life.

I chose to watch Mayerling as my "virtual night at the ballet" last Saturday and put some comments about my thoughts on that thread:

 

 

I've seen on FB that the Barbican has now said it is closed until the end of June.

It's not really dance related but there is a thread ongoing in the "Performances Seen" forum:

 

 

Love it Anna!

Hello Cloud and welcome to the Forum!

 

I'm not a dancer but yes it is possible.  We've got a lot of people on this Forum who have either started from scratch as adults or who have gone back to ballet as adults.

 

I've added a tag at the top of your thread (adult ballet) and if you click on that you will find lots of previous threads to look through.  You will find lots of information in them.  Here's one to start you off:

 

 

Brilliant Melody!  Thanks for sharing.

For anyone on twitter, do go and search on Llandudno goats!  There are lots of similar posts and some videos...

 

 

 

14 minutes ago, Angela said:

Sol León and Paul Lightfoot say goodbye to Nederlands Dans Theater:

https://www.ndt.nl/en/discover/news/sol-paul-say-goodbye.html

 

I find it a bit sad that NDT is losing the continuity from Kylian to Lightfoot and hopefully would have been beyond if Lightfoot had stayed on in an advisory capacity.

 

I believe the incoming AD is also a choreographer so it seems a bit strange to me for the company to say they will not have a house choreographer.

I've picked this up via Instagram:

 

theballetretreat Its happening! We are going digital on Tuesday the 31st of March. We are very excited to bring you ballet class with Gavin McCaig @gavmcc15 straight to your home. This class will be everything you have come to expect from The Ballet Retreat minus the live piano accompaniment! 

The class is just £6 and once you purchased/rented it, you will have access to it for 48hrs. We will release new classes every Tuesday and Friday with Gavin and Hannah @hannah14bateman and also some special guest teachers (You could also get other people in your household to join in?!!) We also want to offer something to our mailing list dancers for free, to say thank you for all your support and encouragement over the years and the past few weeks in particular. We are thrilled to offer masterclasses with current and ex-professional dancers! @marianamoreirarodrigues92 & @yoga.smart7 & @dree_dee. (Mariana Rodrigues, Nicola Gervasi & Dreda Blow)

Want access to our fabulous digital centre, where you can find free and paid for classes? Well, sign up to our mailing list and receive the password every Tuesday and Friday as we release new classes (you can unsubscribe at any time).

By signing up to our mailing list, we can keep you up to date with all the up coming retreats (once life returns to ‘normal’) www.theballetretreat.com and please tag your ballet friends in the comments, we want as many dancers to find us as possible! 

 

Stay safe but don’t stay still, love The Ballet Retreat Team 

 

 

 

 

13 minutes ago, MAX said:

Yes we are not talking about the same thing, I talk about Scarlett, the person, the human being, you talk about The Royal Opera House, productions and money.

 

 

I was talking about the situation at the ROH.  They have got a problem if they do not want to perform his works and presumably they will have to do something about it.

 

Liam Scarlett has maintained total silence on the whole issue but perhaps, links having been cut between him and ROH, he no longer wants them to use his works?

Just now, MAX said:

Come on I think this artist does not merit that !

 

 

 

Does not merit what?

 

If the RB isn't going to be staging his works, which currently seems likely, then they have got a problem.

 

Most traditional Swan Lakes have approximately the same Act 2 and parts of Act 3 and even some parts of Act 1.  Other interpolations are always being changed, taken out (or even restored).

 

Just now, MAX said:

Comments to replace the moments that are "uniquely by Scarlett".

 

 

Why?  As ties between him and the RB have been cut to the extent that RB have stated that (and I appreciate the performances are extremely unlikely to happen) Symphonic Dances has been pulled from the mixed programme in June.  If the company is intent on removing all his work then Swan Lake falls into that category too.  I would guess the company invested too much money in it to jettison it for an entirely new production but possibly (rather than shelving it altogether) excising his unique interpolations and replacing them with something else is more feasible.

14 minutes ago, bangorballetboy said:

We heard a woodpecker on the common a couple of days ago but couldn’t find it.

 

That is the story of my life.

 

I saw the woodpecker at the entrance to the park a couple of weeks ago (having often heard it), shrieked in amazement and it flew away!

25 minutes ago, MAX said:

How can you write such comments ?  it sounds so disrespectful....

 

Which comments?

Josh Barwick is hosting some barre classes next week.  Although not obligatory he is asking for donations as he is a freelance dancer now without income.

 

 

23 hours ago, alison said:

Not to mention expensive?

 

When David Bintley re-made Cyrano for Birmingham Royal Ballet he got the RB set and costumes to cut down on costs.

 

With the new RB Swan Lake I don't know how many of the interpolations are Scarlett's but would it be possible to strip them out and employ someone new to use the non-Scarlett bits and create the rest of the production using the new set and costumes - preferably using the Ashton Act 4, the Ashton pdq and, of course, the Ashton Neapolitan?

 

Friday 27 March 2020
For immediate release

 

Northern Ballet announces 
Pay As You Feel Digital Season

     

 

Productions featured include: Jonathan Watkins’ 1984; Mariana Rodrigues’ Little Red Riding Hood; extended highlights from Northern Ballet’s 50th Anniversary Celebration Gala; andDavid Nixon OBE’s Dracula. Kenneth Tindall and Dan Lowenstein’s dance film EGO will also be released.

 

northernballet.com/pay-as-you-feel

 

 

 

Due to the impact of COVID-19, many of Northern Ballet’s upcoming performances have been cancelled or are under threat of cancellation. Whilst the Company is not performing live at this time, aselection of ballets from Northern Ballet’s repertoire plus a new original dance film will be available to watch online or on television as part of the Company’s Pay As You Feel Digital Season.

 

Over the next few weeks people will be able to tune into 1984, Little Red Riding Hood and Draculafrom the comfort of their home. The Company will also release a new dance film, Kenneth Tindall and Dan Lowenstein’s EGO plus the extended highlights of their 50th Anniversary Celebration Gala which took place at Leeds Grand Theatre at the beginning of the year.

 

Northern Ballet are asking audiences to consider making a donation as they watch content from the Pay As You Feel Digital Season to support the Company, their people and work during these unprecedented times and the significant financial hardship the Company is facing. Lost income from cancelled performances could affect Northern Ballet’s ability to pay their workforce, many of whom are freelancers, as well as their ability to present new ballets, including Merlin which is planned to première this autumn. Those who wish to support the Company can donate at northernballet.com/pay-as-you-feel. 

 

Kenneth Tindall and Dan Lowenstein’s new dance film EGO kicks off the season and will be available to watch online today, Friday 27 March, from 7pm at northernballet.com/ego. 

EGO explores parallel versions of one couple's relationship. At first appearing the perfect Hollywood romance, the couple’s alter egos tell a different story filled with raw animalistic emotion, asking ‘How much does your ego control your behaviour?’

 

First premièred in 2015 to critical acclaim, Jonathan Watkins’ award-winning 1984 will be available to watch from Friday 3 April at northernballet.com/1984. Based on George Orwell's masterpiece, the ballet follows the story of Winston Smith and his life of conformity under the watchful eye of Big Brother.

 

CBeebies will screen their special version of Mariana Rodrigues’ Little Red Riding Hood on Friday 10 April at 9.30am. Created especially for children, Little Red Riding Hood retells the classic fairytalewith a Northern Ballet twist.

 

From Friday 17 April, extended highlights from Northern Ballet’s 50th Anniversary Celebration Gala will be available to watch at northernballet.com. This sell-out performance featured excerpts of productions from Northern Ballet’s history and brought together dancers from The Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Scottish Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet and Phoenix Dance Theatre alongside Northern Ballet’s dancers.

 

After wowing audiences during its live to cinema performances last Halloween, David Nixon OBE’s Dracula will make its television debut as part of the BBC’s Culture in Quarantine Season. Seducing countless generations, Bram Stoker’s legendary vampire lives on in this extraordinary ballet which will be available to watch in the coming weeks on BBC Four and iPlayer.

 

To find out more about Northern Ballet’s Pay As You Feel Digital Season, please visit northernballet.com/pay-as-you-feel. 

 

-ENDS-

 

Notes to Editors

 

Pay As You Feel Digital Season

northernballet.com/pay-as-you-feel

 

Kenneth Tindall and Dan Lowenstein’s EGO 
Available from Friday 27 March at 7pm
northernballet.com/ego

 

Jonathan Watkins’ 1984

Available from Friday 3 April

northernballet.com/1984

 

Mariana Rodrigues’ Little Red Riding Hood 
Friday 10 April, 9.30am
CBeebies

 

50th Anniversary Celebration Gala - Extended Highlights 
Available from Friday 17 April
northernballet.com

 

David Nixon OBE’s Dracula 

Part of the BBC’s Culture in Quarantine Season
Available in the coming weeks
BBC Four / iPlayer

 

About Northern Ballet

In 2020 Northern Ballet is celebrating its 50th Anniversary.

 

Northern Ballet is one of the UK’s leading ballet companies and the widest touring ballet company in the UK. Bold and innovative in its approach, Northern Ballet is prolific at creating new full-length work with a unique blend of strong classical technique and impressive storytelling. Northern Ballet’s repertoire embraces popular culture and takes inspiration from literature, legend, opera and the classics, pushing the boundaries of what stories can be told through dance.

 

A champion for the cultural exports of the North, Leeds-based Northern Ballet is dedicated to bringing ballet to as many people and places as possible, under the leadership of Artistic Director David Nixon OBE. Northern Ballet’s Company of 43 dancers performs a combination of its full-length ballets and specially created ballets for children at more than 40 venues annually.

I’d really like to see the documentary about Lowry that featured the creation of A Simple Man again and the series by Peter Schaufuss (Dancer) and Natalia Makarova (Ballerina) shown again.

 

As a very new ballet watcher Dancer introduced me to the delights of the Bournonville style that I still greatly admire.

So I will say outright that I am not Steven McRae's biggest fan but WOW!!!

 

I chose to watch Mayerling after seeing others commenting favourably about his interpretation of Rudolf and I am so glad I made this choice.

 

For me, it's the most complete performance I have ever seen him give (not that I have seen him lots).  I have enjoyed his technical expertise but never really thought him an actor of enough depth to do the role of Rudolf justice.  How wrong I was!  His performance was a beautifully nuanced interpretation of a man brought up in a dissolute atmosphere, craving the attention and love of his mother and becoming ever more desperate.  I thought he was wonderful in the role.

 

In fact I thought the whole cast was top notch with everyone on stage totally involved in the performance.  Laura Morera, of course, was outstanding and so was Sarah Lamb.  The final duet between Lamb and McRae was incredibly intense and I teared up at the end (which I have to say I never have before at Mayerling).

 

I admired the way the performance had been filmed and the close-ups, particularly of McRae, Lamb and Morera showed both the subtlety and power of their acting.  

 

I thoroughly enjoyed my evening at the ballet and I would like to thank BBB2 for suggesting it.  Are we on for the same time next week?

Yup!

Ready and raring to go with Mayerling.  Just watching the preamble now.