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rojo_fan

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  1. I'm also really looking forward to the cuthbertson/watson R&Js. I haven't seen watson in anything where he hasn't stood out as a very individual, intellegent dancer, so his romeo should be something special. Sylvia, you are so lucky to have been at the conversation with tamara rojo and johan kobborg- my two favourite dancers! Unfortunately, we had to be in college at that time, and as it was one of our last ballet classes before our final exam, really couldn't miss! Please could you tell us what was said? Thank you! rojo_fan
  2. 2003 ended up being a lot more interesting dance-wise than expected, due to the departure of Ross Stretton from the RB. Call me conservative, but I'd much rather sit through "Apollo" and "Raymonda" than "Le Parc", especially when "Apollo"'s performed by Darcey Bussell and Carlos Acosta. I love Bussell in any Balanchine, but I think the pairing of her with Acosta in my favourite Mr. B ballet is something I'll never forget. Acosta was also magnificent in "Manon", with Tamara Rojo. Rojo really brought a depth and realism to Manon. From being quite cool about this ballet in general, Rojo and the rest of the cast (inc. Jose Martin and Laura Morera) made me fall in love with it. Although no other cast as a whole came close, Johan Kobborg's beautifully deliniated Des Grieux was one of the best interpretations I've ever seen. (Btw, it would be criminal not to mention his triple pirouette that slowly sunk to knee at the end of his first variation- made you understand why Manon ran away with him so quickly!) Kobborg's "Out of Denmark" was another highlight. I loved "The Lesson" (reminded me of Silent Cinema for some reason), whilst Kobborg's "Napoli" variation was worth the ticket price alone! My dancers of the year? Edward Watson (esp. in Gloria), Tamara Rojo, Carlos Acosta, Johan Kobborg, and (most of the time) Alina Cojocaru. The rise and rise of Edward Watson has been especially exciting; no matter how small or large the part, his personality always shines through. Compelling to watch. As for new works, I loved Micheal Corder's "Melody on the Move" for ENB, thought McGreggor's "Qualia" for the RB was fascinating, but thought that David Bintley's "Les Saisons", although well constructed, was drab and disappointing. Other disappointments this year included the RB's revivals of "Gong" and "Sinfonietta". Although I feel that I may be missing the point a bit with "Gong", as most of the critics seem to love it, I can't be persuaded that "Sinfonietta" is anything more than one cheesy, predicable cliche after another. Large scale productions that disappointed me were the Kirov's old/new "Bayadere" (why dance when you can parade across the stage for half an hour?!?), and the RB's new "Beauty" (why cupid?!?! WHY?!?) Overall though, a very enjoyable year's viewing, although I stupidly missed the chance to see Cunningham's company at the Tate Modern. I just may stop kicking myself by the time we get to look back on 2004.
  3. I went to see Alina and Johan in R&J on Wednesday night, to celebrate various birthdays that week (inc. Danciegirlmaria). It was completely amazing! Alina seems to be gaining a new dramatic depth to her dancing. She's got an amazing supple back, and I loved the way that she let it melt around Romeo in the balcony pas de deux. Johan Kobborg, however, was absolutely, unbelievably, fantastically amazing! He's the only Romeo I've ever seen (and that includes the video of Nureyev) to really get his feet around MacMillan's tricky footwork to the extent that he found little nuances of character in it. He was completely believable from start to finish, putting in little details of characteration that made Romeo really seem like a real person. His partnership with Alina is a definite must see for anyone who is close enough to get to the ROH. Our college got us tickets to see the company in class the next morning. Although I don't really want to comment on individual dancers (I know how much I hate being watched in class myself!) I would like to say what an amazing opportunity it was, and how much I enjoyed it. It was really kind of the dancers to let us watch, and it was an experience none of us will ever forget!
  4. I saw Tamara and David Makhateli in R&J on 30th November, and I think in general the critics have been a bit harsh. This could be due to the fact that the company has done R&J very recently prior to this revival, and so the critics may be getting a little bit bored of it. There was one critic who moaned that all the supporting roles were badly undercast, although I thought Martin Harvey as Mercutio and Edward Watson as Benvolio were fantastic (can't wait to see Watson as Romeo!). I'd agree that David Makhateli looked quite timid as Romeo, although I quite liked his first act. This might have been because it was his first opening night with the RB, or it could have just been because Tamara Rojo was unbelievably fantastic, and gave him too much to live up to in comparison! Her third act was especially moving- her potion scene extremely vivid- kind of a silent scream technique. Anyway, getting back to Makhateli, I personally thought he was ok, quite average, but not really good enough to hold his own up against Rojo. My dance history teacher was there and told me that she didn't think too much of him. She suggested a Rojo/Acosta R&J. Now there's a thought...
  5. rojo_fan

    Bayadere

    I saw Bayadere on 17th Oct and 1st Nov. The first cast (Tamara Rojo, Carlos Acosta and Marianela Nunez) I'd seen before, but they surpassed themselves this time. Carlos Acosta's Shades variation was completely unbelievable - multipule pirouettes that slowed down at the end to almost come to a stand still, doulbe cabrioles that seemed to hang in the air.... :rolleyes: Tamara Rojo was beautiful technicially, but what really stood out was the contrast in her earthy first act to her etherial second act. On 1st Nov Alina Cojocaru, Johan Kobborg and Laura Morera danced the leads. Johan was great! (as always...) He was sooo in character the whole time, and made you really believe that he loved Nikiya. Nikiya is one of my favourite Alina roles- I love the way she uses her arms and upper body- and her betrothal scene dance was gorgeous. Have to give a mention to the corps - more together in the shades than I've ever seen them in anything. What did everyone else think?
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