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1 hour ago, Jan McNulty said:

BRB performed 5BW some years ago and then principal Molly Smolen made it really special for me.  If circumstances had permitted I would love to have seen it again.

I remember it all very well, not least an open rehearsal with Lynn Seymour coaching.  

 

I was lucky enough to see Seymour perform the last two waltzes at the gala for Sir Anton Dolin.  She was utterly unforgettable.

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39 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

Oh dear, that does not sound good. @Rob S did she say anything about whether or not she's likely to be able to do SL? Not having Instagram I can't see her post.

IG is easily avaliable from the internet.  Search her name and Instagram and it should come up ( or at least it does for me) 

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@oncnp I tried doing that before asking Rob but I couldn't find a post about her being injured so I assumed it must be a story rather than a permanent post & stories are only visible if you are logged in to Instagram. I also had to fight my way through various screens about cookies & logging in so I thought it easier to ask someone who's evidently read it than to continue to wrestle with Instagram.

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3 hours ago, lady emily said:

 

Somewhat a random question but is there a shortcut to see precisely how many tickets are left (when above 100) to a performance? Or are you just counting what you see on the screen and/or estimating?

Not random at all @lady emily- just click on the Filters heading in the middle after you get the seat map. You can also click on Change Dates to compare. They split it up into different price ranges and give you the numbers left in each price, so you just add up the totals they list. It is helpful, eg if you have a budget of up to X quid and you don't have time to click on each colour to see what price that represents. (I promise you I'm not counting lots of little round circles individually or guessing..... 😉

 

3 hours ago, bangorballetboy said:

 

The Linbury stage is, IMO, too small for 5BW.

I agree it will alter the piece somewhat with the dancer having less space to run freely. The Sarasota Ballet repertoire was also altered somewhat by having to squeeze into the Linbury stage- kudos to the company for making the adjustment.

 

1 hour ago, Jan McNulty said:

BRB performed 5BW some years ago and then principal Molly Smolen made it really special for me.  If circumstances had permitted I would love to have seen it again.

Would love to have seen Molly Smollen in it! Perhaps she could have got rid of the "mooching around" impression of it I have- so far Natalia Osipova is the closest to doing so (although I haven't seen every single dancer ever cast in it.) BRB was also the company that convinced me to keep saying that Les Rendezvous should be revived at RB....3 years later it has, and how wonderful they look dancing it.

Edited by Emeralds
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30 minutes ago, Emeralds said:

Not random at all @lady emily- just click on the Filters heading in the middle after you get the seat map. You can also click on Change Dates to compare. They split it up into different price ranges and give you the numbers left in each price, so you just add up the totals they list. It is helpful, eg if you have a budget of up to X quid and you don't have time to click on each colour to see what price that represents. (I promise you I'm not counting lots of little round circles individually or guessing..... 😉

Interesting. It will show me the seats avaible but doesn't give numbers. I must be doing something wrong

 

To add: it works on my phone but not on the desktop

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Me too, then, oncnp.

 

Well, you'll be pleased to know that tonight's performance is sold out.  It must be - the website says so 😛 

"This performance is sold out! Redirecting you to the next available performance..."

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1 minute ago, alison said:

Well, you'll be pleased to know that tonight's performance is sold out.  It must be - the website says so 😛 

"This performance is sold out! Redirecting you to the next available performance..."

When there were plenty of seats not 5 minutes ago. 

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Haven't tried it on all my devices, @oncnp but this is on a (not state of the art but reasonably up to date) phone. Can you try it for Saturday night's show and see if that will show numbers?  Eg currently under Filters it says £50- 32 seats available, £22 - 79 seats available. A lot of the Orchestra stalls and Stall Circle etc have gone. Maybe a lot of youngsters just finished their exams or don't have any this year, and those not wanting to see Taylor Swift (or couldn't get tickets) are keen to try Ashton ballets at a bargain price compared to Wembley? 😀 

 

PS I think the prices pre YROH discount were already a bargain compared to Wembley prices for Taylor Swift! 

 

52 minutes ago, alison said:

Me too, then, oncnp.

 

Well, you'll be pleased to know that tonight's performance is sold out.  It must be - the website says so 😛 

"This performance is sold out! Redirecting you to the next available performance..."

I know what happened, @alison- you mentioned the same problem the other day? What I got at 7.22pm was the website saying "100+ seats left" for tonight, then when I clicked on seat map, it tried to show me the seating, then it went crazy (OK, I mean it failed, flashed on and off a bit), then said "This performance is no longer available. Please contact the box office." Then the message changed to "This performance is sold out. Redirecting (etc).." I think it is meant to say "Please contact the box office" and not "sold out". I think when they changed it last week and got rid of our order histories, this message got coded wrongly as well. 

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3 hours ago, Rob S said:

Mayara has just posted on IG that she has a rib joint strain but is still hoping to do Rhapsody tomorrow 

Oh no! I was looking forward to seeing her Rhapsody tomorrow. I hope she gets better soon.

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Talking of unsold seats I see the ROH website or Instagram is offering 30% off the price of some top tickets for Tosca for quite a few days. It just popped up and I can't find it now but it sounds as if ballet isn't the only genre struggling. 

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On 20/06/2024 at 01:27, alison said:

 

Talking of this, I'm told that the entire ballet used to be danced behind a scrim, so presumably somewhat more blurry.  Does anyone know when this practice stopped?

I am sure last time I saw BRB do it (maybe 7 years ago?) it still was danced behind a scrim. Am I misremembering?

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10 hours ago, jmhopton said:

Talking of unsold seats I see the ROH website or Instagram is offering 30% off the price of some top tickets for Tosca for quite a few days. It just popped up and I can't find it now but it sounds as if ballet isn't the only genre struggling. 


I think things going up against the Euros are going to struggle. Even if there isn’t a clash in the timings, so many people I know are spending all their fun money going to the pub to watch the matches. 

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14 minutes ago, lady emily said:


I think things going up against the Euros are going to struggle. Even if there isn’t a clash in the timings, so many people I know are spending all their fun money going to the pub to watch the matches. 

Ballet lovers? 

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7 minutes ago, bridiem said:

 

It's perfectly possible to love both ballet and football. I speak from experience... 

 

Indeed.  Not to mention the fact that it is the start of the grass court tennis season.

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Well, I have to say I am really glad I decided to get a ticket for last night's performance.  Again, a few thoughts which I always mean to keep brief, and end up letting my fingers run away with me.

 

First of all, the Short Works:
I was really surprised that of the 3, I enjoyed the homage to Isadora Duncan the most. Which just goes to show that I shouldn't be put off by my own pre conceived ideas. I thought Romany Pajdak did a splendid job, managing to imbue each piece with a slightly different emotion. I got a real sense of the impact that Duncan must have had, and why she became such a star. I was quite startled when it ended; it seemed way too short. Also Pajdak looked lovely, that wig really suited her.

 

The Walk to the Paradise Garden was performed by Macarena Gimenez, Ricardo Graziano, and Daniel Pratt. It was beautifully danced, with great emotion, but the ROH website describes it as “a rapturous pas de deux”. Would it really have hurt to put in a brief synopsis to explain who the cloaked figure was supposed to be, and what part he played in this rapture? Or do they assume that everyone already knows the background? I am extremely glad I am a member of this forum, and could read the discussion, because I would have been completely baffled by the ending. And I wouldn't have been the only one, judging by the comments going on around me afterward.

Hamlet and Ophelia was my least favourite of the 3. In spite of the fact that Hayward and Bracewell were giving it their all, it just felt a bit dull and repetitive. Something created for a ballet gala doesn't always stand the test of time, and sadly this one doesn't either as far as I am concerned.

 

Rhapsody was lovely, but again the lead dancers didn't quite work for me although I can't put my finger on why it didn't. I don't think it is the ballet itself, which I love, so it can only be the dancers cast. Taisuke Nakao coped very well with the choreography, probably better than Acri when I saw him, but at times he appeared to look a little strained. Anna Rose O'Sullivan smiled very prettily, and danced well, but something seemed to be missing. I definitely preferred Magri in the lead role, she exuded real joy, and looked as though she was having a great time. .

I've left The Dream until last. Oh, what a fabulous ballet it is. The whole cast were terrific, with Liam Boswell wonderfully fleet of foot and cheeky of expression as Puck, and Zucchetti genuinely funny as Bottom. But the evening belonged to Naghdi and Richardson. They were both magnificent. I was quite surprised by Naghdi. I know she is a fabulous dancer but I've never thought of her as a natural for the Ashton rep, whereas Haywood definitely is. Well, she certainly proved me wrong last night, she was gorgeous. Richardson seemed perfect in the role of Oberon, commanding the stage with exactly the sort of haughty personality required for the King of the Fairies. Their final pas de deux was absolutely stunning, you could feel that the audience was totally gripped, and we all responded accordingly at the end.  Worth the journey and the price of the ticket for this alone.  A memory I will treasure.  

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, bridiem said:

 

It's perfectly possible to love both ballet and football. I speak from experience... 

I doubt very much that football has had an impact on ticket sales for the Ashton Triple but am happy to be proved wrong 

 

1 hour ago, Fonty said:

 

Indeed.  Not to mention the fact that it is the start of the grass court tennis season.

 

it’s been quite a feat juggling Roland Garros, POB Giselle, Surbiton, Sarasota Ballet, ENB Swan Lake, Ashton Triple 1, Queens, Ashton Triple 2 and RB Swan Lake and it’s not over yet. Next week brings Eastbourne, more RB Swan Lake, then there’s Wimbledon and Acosta Danza to follow. Something had to give and I chose to skip RBS and the Next Generation festival. It’ll all end with the ever delightful RBS Summer Performance which I am delighted does not clash this year with the Wimbledon finals. 

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4 hours ago, San Perregrino said:

Ballet lovers? 

I've watched the World Cup and Euros football years ago, but must admit I thought @lady emily was referring to the currency (euros) and not the tournament until I saw the word "matches"..... !

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16 minutes ago, annamk said:

The Dream this afternoon: William Bracewell and Natalia Osipova (complete with blond wig) gave the performance of the season. We didn’t want it to end. 

I agree. I had goosebumps during the reunion PDD. Just breathtaking 😍❤️ 

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Quick post before Rhapsody…

 

53808559780_3885baa541_b.jpg

 

53808363593_1853e8eaa2_b.jpg

 

53808560300_72ba14e508_b.jpg

 

Natalia once again got her hair caught in William’s crown but thankfully very quickly parted!! 

 

 

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Just realised in my review above I talked about the last pas de deux from Naghdi and Richardson, I should have said the reunion pas de deux.  Can't remember if there is another one after that, but  I am sure you all know what I was talking about.

 

And Osipova does look good in that blonde wig.  I am very relieved they are not compulsory any more, but it really suits her.

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7 hours ago, RHowarth said:

I am sure last time I saw BRB do it (maybe 7 years ago?) it still was danced behind a scrim. Am I misremembering?

 

I do remember BRB doing it behind a scrim but not last time, although I may be misremembering.

 

When we saw the company perform it in Munich I don't remember a scrim but then the stage was huge compared to most that the company appears at.  It was an absolute joy to see.

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15 minutes ago, Fonty said:

Just realised in my review above I talked about the last pas de deux from Naghdi and Richardson, I should have said the reunion pas de deux.  Can't remember if there is another one after that, but  I am sure you all know what I was talking about.

 

And Osipova does look good in that blonde wig.  I am very relieved they are not compulsory any more, but it really suits her.


I may be wrong but I thought it was the reconciliation pdd. 

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Absolutely blown away by Luca Acri and Mayara Magri in Rhapsody this afternoon - had tears in my eyes at the end of their pdd! Such an assured and supremely confident pairing, and they seemed to be having the time of their lives out there. 

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1 hour ago, annamk said:

The Dream this afternoon: William Bracewell and Natalia Osipova (complete with blond wig) gave the performance of the season. We didn’t want it to end. 


Even better than Tuesday? Surely not humanly possible!

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12 minutes ago, Scheherezade said:


Even better than Tuesday? Surely not humanly possible!

 

I'd have thought it was not possible but it somehow it was even more magical ! The reconciliation pdd was transcendent. This from Roslyn Sulcas reviewing for the New York Time (their first performance) captures the essence 

 

“And only she (Osipova) and Bracewell conveyed the strange erotic charge of the reconciliation duet, perhaps the most beautiful pas de deux Ashton created.”

 

I never thought of Osipova and Bracewell and as a partnership but now I'd like to see them in everything. 

 

Edited by annamk
Typos, clarity
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