40 replies to this topic

[Lolly]

I'm feeling left out because of all the discussions about POB - I am sure there must be some others who see RB! Then everyone won't have to just read about me talking about my favourite dancers all the time.;)

So... anyone going to the Triple Bill which opens next week? It is Winter Dreams, Sinfonietta and Scenes de Ballet. I am very excited about seeing Anthony Dowell in Winter Dreams... and dying to know who is in Sinfonietta (and wondering why it is a big secret!). Is there anyone who has seen it and can tell us what to expect? I haven't seen any Kylian at all. Scenes de Ballet looks interesting from the snippet of rehearsal I saw on the screen in the ROH foyer.

[bertrande]

I like the RB a lot! Watched Swan Lake and Nutcracker (twice!). But I'm not based in London and my next visit there will only be in May when I can hopefully catch the triple bill and the additional performances of Manon!

[Alexandra]

Lolly, you'll just have to get your friends to start posting about what they're seeing

I wish we had more Londoners, too, but I think so many post on Ballet.co -- www.ballet.co.uk -- where there are a lot of Londoners, and many people don't want to post twice about what they're seeing.  

"Scenes de ballet" is gorgeous, I think; there are those who think it's Ashton's finest ballet.  It's for a leading couple and a small corps, and one of its secrets is that Ashton was reading Euclid when he choreographed it and its patterns are very geometric, and no matter where you sit, at what angle you view it, you'll see a completely work; there are no "off" angles.  ABT does "Sinfonietta" and it's very popular -- a "pure dance" work with lots of jumps, good parts for the men, especially.

[Estelle]

Lolly, I talk about the POB because it's the company I see the most often, but I'm interested in reading your review of the RB performances! That surely looks like an exciting program (and Alexandra, your depiction of "Scenes de ballet" makes me regret once more that it's nearly impossible to see any Ashton works in France. A ballet inspired by Euclid, that sounds great! )
I saw "Sinfonietta" once, in 1995, at the Paris Opera. I don't have a precise memory of the choreography but I had found it pleasant to watch, and I especially liked the music, it made me discover Janacek.

[Tracey]

Lolly, don't panic - we are out here, it's just some of us don't manage to get up to London that much!  When I do manage to get there I have put up my 'reviews', but please don't stop with yours because although I am extremely jealous I do love to read them .

I'm going to see the Chisinau National Ballet down here on Monday - not sure that they'll be too good but I've decided that bad ballet is better than no ballet at all!!  I booked 4 tickets today in the stalls for Monday - that's really unusual for Bristol - ballet sells out very quickly down here!!  We don't get very much coming through Bristol - usually the ENB, the Northern Ballet Theatre go to Bath, and then these odd ones that are here at the moment.

[beckster]

Give me a few weeks, Lolly, and I'll be a Lahndaner and will be able to watch lots of ballet. Then maybe I will start posting about them, if I feel brave.

[sylvia]

I'm excited about seeing Scenes de ballet for the first time after everything I've heard about it. I'm desperate to see something new (to me) after weeks and weeks of Swan Lakes and Nuts. I'm going for three performances, probably will book for more as I always end up doing after first night! Plus all my essays will have been handed in by then so I'll try to post as much as I can.

Beckster, good luck with the move! I adore this city and have been so happy since I moved here a few months ago.

[Mel Johnson]

Back to "Scenes" for a brief observation; Ashton considered it to be his most workmanlike ballet, and there are and were many critics who agree with him.

[Lolly]

Thank you everyone for your tidbits about the ballets - it sounds like it is a good bill. I am going twice, but sadly I am sitting in the same seat! So I won't get to experience the "all angles" thing of Scenes de Ballet. Mr Johnson, by "workmanlike" do you mean that it is dull?

I don't live in London either, I sometimes think it is a good job I don't or I would go to ROH every day. Not that it would be a bad thing - actually I can't think of anything I would like more!

[Mel Johnson]

Lolly, "workmanlike" is taken from ancient legal jargon and means "put together according to professional standards, good, serviceable, see MASTERPIECE."

[Alexandra]

But "workmanlike" does have a connotation of dull, as does "serviceable," I think, so I don't think we'd want it on the poster trying to entice people to come in.  "Scene de ballet" is beautifully constructed, Lolly -- its form is perfect, I think it's fair to say.  And I'm sure it's received dull performances, but I don't think it's a dull ballet.

[Mel Johnson]

However, don't overlook that synonym, "masterpiece".  Ashton considered it his most well-crafted work, and while that word is not publicity fodder either, that's not what I'm addressing.  Ashton was demonstrating the highest sort of professional craft and sophistication in "Scenes de Ballet" and it is always exciting in my eyes, even if the casting sometimes leaves things to be desired.

[anoushka]

Well I must say I am really looking forward to seeing this Triple Bill! Especially as I get to see both casts, I still find it amazing how different a ballet can be with a different cast. And to see Anthony Dowell is unmissable! I'll let you know I find them xx

[Margaret]

I am also looking forward to this triple bill - Winter Dreams is a favourite of mine and I loved it with Bussell, Mukhamedov and Dowell some years ago.  Scenes de Ballet I don't know but it sounds interesting.   It is also repeated later in the season in a triple bill which includes 'Song of the Earth' and a new ballet by David Bintley.
I have a copy of Sinfonietta on tape, with NDT, it's theme is, I think, a 'longing for the homeland'.  It has haunting music and flowing choreography - though maybe a bit repetitive.  Having said that, a live performance is very different.  I particularly remember Les Noces being difficult to watch on video, but was stunning in an actual performance and quite mesmeric.

[beckster]

I've applied for a ticket to see the Bintley triplebill with scenes de ballet in.  It does sound a very interesting piece so I hope I get to go.  I am intrigued by the idea of setting a ballet to a mathematical base.