Jane Simpson

Link to casting page - new photos of most of the dancers, too.

The casting for most of the Copenhagen performances is now up - the only surprise is that Watson is doing the Sylph with both Dean and Birkkjær.

There's apparently a novel based on the life of Violetta Elvin due out in the next few months - I haven't entirely figured out whether it's going to be truth or fiction or somewhere in between, but you can see the publicity here - and apart from anything else it's worth having a look at the photos to see what 91 looks like these days!

I hope she found happiness and fulfilment after she left the RB - she started out with such bright promise but in the end her career just ran into the sand - so sad.

Dance Europe reports the sad news of the death of Bryony Brind, formerly a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet.

There's one of the Sarasota Ballet here

It's quite small but gives you the idea.

But why change them? I thought they were quite an important element in the different flavours of the two pas de deux, as well as being oddly attractive in their own right.

(And thanks for the replies)

What do the green Monotones trio wear on their heads at ABT? Originally they had Phrygian caps but the last RB revival abandoned these for some reason and they just wore plain caps like the white trio.

The comments I've seen so far have been really split - 4* in one paper, only 2* in another, strong feelings both for and against on the theatre's Facebook page.

One critic also complains how little the company is dancing in the opening months of the season, and certainly it's the first time in 10 years that I haven't been over to Copenhagen before Christmas: it's a strangely planned season anyway, with all the full-length pieces in the later months, but I guess it's the financial problems which are largely to blame.

The RDB's annual 'taster' programme, Dans2Go, opens tonight: 'the white act' of last season's new production of Swan Lake together with a new piece by Tilman O'Donnell, described as 'a choreographic concert'. There's a trailer telling a bit about the new piece here

(one thing I like already is that the dancers in the new piece will have their names printed on the back of their track suit tops!)

Casting has just been announced for the first 3 performances: new to Swan Lake are Jonathan Chmelensky, dancing with J'aime Crandall tonight, and Kizzy Matiakis dancing Odette for the first time on 29/10. I saw K Matiakis as Aurora in Copenhagen a few years ago and thought that although it wasn't a particularly good match for her temperament, she showed a much greater understanding of the role than any of the others I saw - she could be a really interesting Odette.

They are using the old stage for these performances and not surprisingly they won't be showing the complicated set for Swan Lake, made for the Opera House.

I'm not going to be able to see this show so please report if you get to it!

There's now a full review of the programme, by Carol Pardo, on DanceViewTimes

Entirely agree about the RDB website - the only hope is that they haven't finished it yet. There was an article criticising it in one of the Danish newspapers, with a long string of very critical comments too - as far as I remember the theatre said they'd had to change it to work with a new booking system. But it's infuriating for instance that there seems no way of finding a list of dates for a particular production.

... for the happiest of reasons: she expects her first child in December. The company hopes to give her a proper farewell at the start of next season instead of the planned April 2016 date.

There's a long interview with her, in Danish, in Berlingske

- she talks about her plans for the future and also the way her perception of retirement has changed from dread to acceptance as the deadline has got nearer.

Yes, that's her. (Amy Watson in the trailer )

Yes, it was Part who came into my mind too!

Thank you for the link. How has the ballet fared? Is it popular and performed frequently?

It has not been revived since the first run, three years ago - and if ABT borrow/buy/lease the sets and costumes, which would seem sensible, it's not going to be done again soon...

Does anyone know just how much Fokine Ratmansky's version incorporates?

The programme note for the RDB described the choreography as 'Ratmansky, inspired by Fokine's original stagings from 1914 and 1937' but I have no idea how much, if at all, this translated into actual steps.

I saw the same performance as Helene in Copenhagen and although I got less from it than she did, my piece about it has some photographs - the RDB website has just been re-done and Helene's link doesn't seem to work at present.

Much the best role is the Queen of Shemakhan - a lot of fun for somebody! Lendorf was one of the Tsar's sons in the first cast - Helene and I saw the other cast.

There are 2 acts each of about 45 minutes.

The Palace Theatre in Stamford, Connecticut, is hosting a one-night-only performance by dancers from NYCB and the RDB on Friday 11th September - details here

Some delectable casting...

(Sorry if this is not new news - it has just turned up in one of my standard searches but there's no date on it. I think it's probably this year, though!)

The LA Ballet's 2015 - 16 season will include the first performances by an American company of Frederick Ashton's Romeo and Juliet, originally made for the Royal Danish Ballet.

The press release says Lendorf will remain as a principal dancer with the RDB for next season. If he then moves permanently to ABT - well, if it's what he wants I'm happy for him, but very unhappy indeed for the Danes and for me!

I entirely agree with Sasark about the video at the beginning - it's wonderful how it seems to pull you into the heart of something truly mysterious. I saw a couple of the performances last week and I've finally decided that the least irritating approach to Hubbe's handling of the story - quick flashback at the beginning, lots of plotting going on without any explanation, ending looking disastrous but maybe inconclusive - is to imagine that this is Part 2 of a longer saga (The Game of the Swan Kingdom or something): you've missed Part 1 and the flashback is like the little resume you get while the opening credits roll - now we're 'two months later' perhaps and you just have to work out who is who as it goes along. And perhaps the ending isn't the final word - there's Part 3 still to come and maybe Siegfried will escape from Odile's clutches and find Odette again. Anyone got the box set?

Apart from that little fantasy... I saw the Dorger/Birkkjær partnership and also had another look at Baldwin/Kaas. I'd been really looking forward to Dorger after seeing her in Etudes and I was not disappointed - her dancing is big and generous and she fills out every phrase: she's SAB trained and I kept thinking how I'd love to see her in the 2nd movement of Symphony in C and also in Jewels. She still looks a bit unfinished but there's a hint of grandeur in what she does (especially as Odette) and with the right coaching and careful casting she could be quite something. She did the pas de trois in the other performance I saw and I remembered how much I'd liked her in a solo in Bayadere a couple of years ago - she has that rare ability to make you believe that's she's not thinking about technique at all, just having a simply lovely time doing these wonderful steps and sharing her happiness with all of us. In the same act on that night Andreas Kaas brought even more eloquence to Siegfried's Erik Bruhn solo than when I saw him a month ago, so for a time at least I was quite prepared to forget all my reservations about the production and just enjoy the dancing.

The other dancer I must mention was Gudrun Bojesen leading the Hungarian dance - pure class.

Jon Axel Fransson has just been nominated for a big prize for his performances in this run. I'd guess it's mostly for his Rothbart - he was the first cast - but he's also been an impressive Benno.

(And by the way, Sasark, I had a look round and thought you'd have been fine in jeans!)

And one more thing - it's amazing to be in a theatre where you can't see the front cloth properly until they close the auditorium doors, because the setting sun is shining directly on to it; and if you look out from your seat then, you get a view straight out on to the open harbour. S'wonderful.

More details of the new season - dates show the first and last performance of each programme:

Short Time Together

Short Time Together (Leon/Lightfoot)

New work (Idan Sharabi)

The Death that Best Preserves (Natalia Horecna)

Sept 25 – Nov 14 2015

DANS2GO

Swan Lake – the white act

New work (Tilman O'Donnell)

Oct 22 – Dec 1 2015

Nutcracker (Balanchine)

Dec 4 – 22 2015

La Sylphide

Theme and Variations

Jan 6 – Feb 27 2016

Romeo and Juliet (Neumeier)

Mar 4 – Apr 14 2016

Don Quixote ( new production by Hubbe)

Apr 30 – May 25 2016

Come Fly Away (Twyla Tharp)

May 21 – Jun 2 2016

Rystet spejl (Shaken Mirror)

New piece by Kim Brandstrup

May 28 Jun 4 2016

Also:

Fabelmageren – a ballet for children

Hubberiet – several evenings on different topics presented by Hubb

Horisonten – a theatre/dance/opera/etc piece with Gudrun Bojesen and Sorella Englund among many others

A farewell performance for Gudrun Bojesen, sometime in April

I believe Mara Galeazzi is learning Ferri's role in case of need.

But remember that it is 30 years since Ferri left the Royal Ballet and that she has very rarely appeared in London since - the younger dancers have probably never seen her dance and many of the audience may not even know her name.

It's the new one.

... announced today. Details on their website:

http://kglteater.dk/

and an overview by Eva Kistrup on her blog:

http://danceviewtimes.typepad.com/eva_kistrup/2015/04/young-colts-and-old-warhorses.html

(Sorry can't expand more about it but am in Copenhagen withou a proper keyboard)

Isn't this the bit in the ballet when Puck comes back with the magic flower and Oberon is explaining how it works? I've always assumed it was a dance version of:

The next thing then she waking looks upon,

Be it on lion, bear, or wolf, or bull,

On meddling monkey, or on busy ape,

She shall pursue it with the soul of love

But I agree some Pucks do the monkey/ape bit with more conviction than others!