Royal Ballet
The Royal Ballet - variations on a comebackFriday, 16 April 2021
Like the British high street, the once richly diverse landscape of dance in the UK is likely to look very different once lockdown is fully lifted. There will be losses, noticeably among the smaller companies whose survival was always precarious.... Read more... |
The Royal Ballet: Live, Within the Golden Hour review - stunning, joyous danceTuesday, 17 November 2020
Unfazed by yet another forced cancellation, the Royal Ballet has notched up a small triumph over the virus. When what was to have been a performance to a live audience in the Opera House fell prey to new restrictions, it went ahead anyway. With... Read more... |
The Royal Ballet: Back on Stage review - fireworks in the GardenTuesday, 13 October 2020
"Don’t hold back,” a front-of-house manager told us. “If you want to show your appreciation, go for it.” This was nothing to do with providing sound effects for the imminent streaming to tens of thousands around the world. It was about letting the... Read more... |
Live from Covent Garden 1, Royal Opera and Ballet online review - small-scale but perfectly formedSunday, 14 June 2020
Vintage champagne was served up last night, and whether you found the glass half-full or half-empty would depend on your perspective. In the bigger picture, it's disappointing that not more musicians could return to the Royal Opera House stage, and... Read more... |
'If they had been any closer my face would have misted up': filming 'Men at the Barre'Tuesday, 26 May 2020
“That’s Marcelino Sambé, he’s wonderful,” said the artistic administrator of the Royal Ballet as I followed her down one of the many corridors that weave throughout the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. “He’s a newly promoted Principal, a very... Read more... |
The Cellist/Dances at a Gathering, Royal Ballet review - A grand love affair with a celloWednesday, 19 February 2020
The cello is the stringed instrument most closely aligned to the human voice. It has a human shape, too, so in theory it was a short step for choreographer Cathy Marston to give it a living, breathing presence in her ballet about the legendary... Read more... |
Onegin, Royal Ballet review - vivid and intelligent dance dramaMonday, 20 January 2020
It’s no surprise that audiences love John Cranko’s Onegin, with its vividly economical narrative (close to Tchaikovsky’s opera), attractive decors by Jürgen Rose, and intelligent drama. True, it feels a tad old-fashioned – although that, as my... Read more... |
Coppélia, Royal Ballet review - a real charmerWednesday, 04 December 2019
In featuring ordinary people and things rather than magic curses or avenging ghosts, Coppélia stands apart in the canon of 19th century ballets. The only mystery about this delightful old production is why the Royal Ballet has not programmed it for... Read more... |
Concerto/Enigma Variations/Raymonda Act III, Royal Ballet review - time to cheer the corps de balletWednesday, 23 October 2019
As a mood-lifter, it’s hard to beat the opening of Concerto. Against a primrose sky, figures in daffodil, tangerine and brick form lozenges of fizzing colour, foregrounded by a leading couple so buoyant their heels barely ever touch down. Kenneth... Read more... |
Cross Currents/Monotones II/Everyone Keeps Me, Linbury Theatre review - the Royal Ballet finds the missing linkTuesday, 15 October 2019
This programme of three short works is all about influence, specifically the supposed cross currents between ballet and contemporary dance in the latter half of the 20th century. The irony is that this is the first time that the Royal Ballet has... Read more... |
Manon, Royal Opera House review - splendid start to the seasonThursday, 03 October 2019
The Royal Ballet’s choice of season opener could be dismissed as safe and predictable. But as the glorious naturalistic detail of 1830s Paris unfolds in Kenneth MacMillan’s 1974 retelling, you see the reasoning. It’s only a year since the Royal... Read more... |
The Firebird triple bill, Royal Ballet review - generous programme with Russian flavourThursday, 06 June 2019
You can’t accuse the Royal Ballet of lightweight programming: the three juicy pieces in the triple bill that opened at the Royal Opera House on Tuesday add up to a three-hour running time. That’s a lot of ballet for your buck. Whether they actually... Read more... |
