I went in the afternoon and it was such a special performance. Everyone looked so happy to be there, especially Reece, and he was superb in all three of his pieces - warm, animated and polished. Spring Waters was particularly jubilant. Another standout for me was Mariko Sasaki's Odile. Being in such an intimate venue really let the audience see all the subtle nuances of her performance, and the next time Swan Lake is programmed I will definitely be booking for her. William Bracewell was incredible as always, and Viola Pantuso's Odette debut was particularly lovely. She was lovely, albeit a little tentative, in Sleeping Beauty, but her Odette was tragic, lithesome and beautiful and she looks to be a very promising Swan Queen in a future run. I love the sparkle that Sae Maeda brings to everything, and I enjoyed her, particularly in Rhapsody, but I found myself thinking that I would have enjoyed Sleeping Beauty and Diana & Acteon even more had she and Viola had swapped roles. Qualia was a work that I approached with ambivalence going in, having only ever seen it on video, but the chemistry between Melissa Hamilton and Ryo Hirano made me appreciate the work in a way that I hadn't before. Big, beautiful smiles from both of them when it was done. The musical performances from Rob Clark, Kate Shipway, and Melissa Carstairs must also be mentioned, as they were brilliant. There was also a lovely story in the commemorative booklet about how the town of Airdrie and ScotRail pitched in to support and champion the Clarkes, with four of the five Clarke sons (remarkably!) attending White Lodge. A standing ovation for Reece, and flowers presented to all the performers by local ballet students, which got me quite teary. A beautiful afternoon, and got on the train back to Glasgow feeling so grateful to have had this opportunity for us up in Scotland!
