Mashinka

Who could forget it? Never ever heard so much booing in my life, though I think most of the anger was aimed against the inappropriate use of Rossini's famous ballet music. It also came after a series of rubbish RO productions. In defence of the Brits, they are not as prudish as some imagine, I remember a production of Purcell's Fairy Queen at Glyndebourne and repeated at an Albert Hall Prom, where the stage was invaded by a hoard of the cutest Easter bunnies ever seen that began by dancing and then started doing what rabbits do best in every permutation of the Kama Sutra. The audience was hysterical with laughter. What offends is violence towards women, particularly graphic in the Rigoletto I saw earlier this week.

In Britain political correctness is not as prevalent as in the US, it exists strongly in some political circles but in general the concept is viewed with scepticism by the public as a whole. In the arts it is embraced in the theatre (no white actor may now play Othello), but not in the other performing arts where white tenors continue to sing Verdi's Otello. In fact the opera and particularly the RO go further and further with unwarranted scenes of sex and female nudity. The current Rigoletto opens with a scene of such extreme sexual violence and nudity I had to look away, yes the opening is described in the text as an orgy but in decades of performance this has been shown without the need to cast the audience as voyeurs. In the online programme notes there is a warning of the graphic content but I feel sorry for those parents introducing their kids to one of the most tuneful operas in existence to find them faced with X rated content, it must have been excruciatingly embarrassing for them.

Chinara Alizade is back! Let's hope Vaziev likes her better than Filin did.

Come on people, Balanchine wasn't the only choreographer to create a Japanese ballet, Ashton, MacMillan and Ratmansky all had a go. The culture fascinates, does Madam Butterfly offend too?

Whatever she's got it for, it wasn't technical accuracy. These honours are scattered around like confetti though and a lot of people turn them down when offered.

The Kirov version has a whole bevy of women on a dais being leered at, in other versions only two are sold. The harem episodes refer to something a little different.

Watson is massively popular but his forte is not the classical rep, he has dropped those roles completely.

Nevertheless the sight of several women being sold is stomach turning and is not a feature of other versions I've seen.

I'm in the age bracket that saw Fonteyn/Nureyev/Dowell at their height, but regards to Steven M. I agree with all you say. He is remarkable and I'm also unable to understand the negativity. Speaking as a London based ballet goer I know there is a faction of RB fans that have a problem with guest artists and McRae has danced regularly with Salenko and occasionally with Obraztsova which doesn't endear him to that faction. I prefer to acknowledge the general audiences that greet his performances with deafening ovations rather than those others. Personally he's always first choice when I book for ROH.

Don't write the RB off, things are starting to brighten up there, go and take a look at Ms Hayward and Ms Naghdi. Besides with the recent Bolshoi purge, the upper ranks of female Bolshoi dancers doesn't impress me at all. Amongst the principals only Krysanova and Obrastzova deserve to be called ballerinas.

Yes Franz was danced by a woman, however Amyntas (sic) was not, but Eros was danced by a girl. Ashton has stayed faithful to the original libretto, the entire ballet follows Merante's original. Osipova is for me the glory of the Royal Ballet, I saw her dance Sylvia on Monday, Cubanmiamiboy is in for a rare treat.

I too was annoyed that it purports to be a review and is actually noting of the kind, but Ismene Brown never misses an opportunity to rubbish all things Russian.

It's a lightweight role, it was created for Michael Somes who wasn't exactly a virtuoso. Aminta is absent for the second act, curiously like Franz in Delibes other well known ballet.

You are treading on thin ice here, without specific examples of disgusting behaviour I don't see how you can make such accusations against POB and RDB. The rules of this site do not permit stories that are unverified but a lot of people in the ballet world are aware of problems unique to Russian companies. Some things cannot be dismissed as simply gossip, not when the same stories get back to you again and again each time from a reliable source. Remember actual criminal activity takes place in Russian companies and doesn't elsewhere. perhaps casting couch revelations will soon be exposed in the world of dance but I believe that is universal.

Indeed, the correct term is ephebophilia I believe.

Admiration for the Bolshoi and its traditions extends far further than Moscow, far more ballet goers care than you assume. To see the Bolshoi style dismantled in favour of the contortionists will be a tragedy.

Sadly not new Tito Beltran http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7241667.stm Robert King http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-23248200

She was indeed fantastic, though her contemporary, Deanne Bergsma, was also sensational in the role, perhaps because of her jaw dropping pas de bouree which remains unrivalled. Sadly the Royal Ballet no longer has a half way decent Myrtha, perhaps due to the refusal to cast a principal in the role. Sorry to hear Vaziev is still promoting over-extended dancers, I have been hoping that style would be quietly dropped. I'm still in shock at Alexandrova's demotion.

The Royal Ballet organization has existed for getting on for a century now and has always concerned itself with new work along with the classics, the back catalogue is huge and everyone has opinions on what should and shouldn't be revived. I personally am very happy about the current revival of Sylvia for example, but if 'foundation works' means the classics, they are absolutely not ignored. Worth remembering that repertoire is often dependant on works that fully exist, it's not unusual to discover sets and costumes for a significant work out of the rep for a long time moth infested and nibbled by rats. Or worse, the notations are missing and no one remembers the choreography. All dancers love having new work created on them and the bottom line is that the Royal Ballet has always been a hive of creativity and I hope it stays that way.

I'd be more impressed if you'd seen Tereshkina.

I thought the story line was very clear and not so very dissimilar to Daphnis and Chloe, it's an excellent ballerina role, I'm seeing Osipova later in the run and I've a feeling the role will suit her.

Unfortunately when a new work is commissioned there is no guarantee that it will be successful and I'm not sure that it is fair to criticize Kevin O'Hare for persisting in encouraging creativity as that is the life blood of every company. He has presided over spectacular hits such as Wolff Works and dismal misses such as Strapless. He has also embarked on a programme of furthering the careers of young dancers reversing the casting policy that under the last two directors was too reliant on casting according to seniority rather than suitability. Ms Yanowsky is over forty now but her career is not entirely over as I understand she will continue giving occasional performances. Ms Nunez is massively popular with the London public and her technique has always been impressive however a small cabal of RB fans tend to be very vocal in support of personal favourites and frequently embarrass themselves by airing their prejudices against those they dislike, often performers of outstanding abilities. Favouritism dressed up as measured criticism has always existed but social media etc. can give a platform to ugly prejudices. As far as Mr O'Hare is concerned he appears to be doing a very good job, certainly my own outings to see the RB have increased under his tenure,

Adyrkhaeva has been a senior ballet mistress for a very long time, I saw her give company classes on tour when Ratmansky was in charge, I would have thought her prominence has more to do with her effectiveness than the fact she hails from North Ossetia. Dancers change their personal coaches throughout their careers, I don't see anything sinister in that.

Devastated. Jose Carreras survived that horrible disease and I was full of hope Hvorostovsky would too. A sad day.

With respect, I don't think the Guardian story is relevant to this discussion as it is an out and out example of the often appalling racism in sport that is present in eastern Europe. Not just against African teams as the England and France teams are very diverse racially and have reported similar abuse when they play in eastern Europe. A small fine is usually imposed when far tougher measures such as an outright ban from competing in international matches could in theory be imposed. A better example where malice is not intended but jars with modern sensibilities would be the Dutch tradition of 'Black Pete'. This character dates back centuries and hands out sweets to children in Christmas parades usually dressed in a medieval style, nowadays there are a lot of people that want this practice dropped. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/netherlands/11996588/Dutch-Black-Pete-makes-annual-arrival-to-howls-of-protest.html