The Royal Ballet's Don Quixote

 

At the beginning of January, when I arranged my wishes for 2020 in a picture, I put: “the Royal Opera House in London/Royal Opera House/Royal Christmas” by chance (my real dream was Metropolitan opera but this came up by chance so I put it).

This week, an opera buddy sent me an email with the info that the Royal Opera House in London will broadcast from its repertory for Christmas one opera - Mozart's The Magic Flute, and one ballet - Don Quixote. Just a year ago I watched at Berlin State Opera The Magic Flute and I did not liked this opera, but Don Quixote is one of my favorite ballets. Just a year ago, also on the eve of Christmas I watched Don Quixote in Sofia by the Stara Zagora’s opera house with principal dancers from the Berlin State’s Ballet Iana Salenko and Marian Walter, and with the choreography by Arshak Ghalumyan – it was marvelous.  

For me Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without The Nutcracker but the Royal Opera House obviously decided something else. I saw the name of Carlos Acosta and decided to have the chance and watch.

On the Christmas evening the Royal Opera House, London broadcasted The Royal Ballet's Don Quixote (2013) after Marius Petipa and the music by Ludwig Minkus, with the orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Don Quixote is one of Marius Petipa's much-loved 19th-century classics - its story is drawn from Miguel de Cervantes's classic novel and set to Ludwig Minkus's score. Production and choreography - Carlos Acosta; arranged and orchestrated by Martin Yates, designs Tim Hatley; conductor Martin Yates. Cast Basilio - Carlos Acosta, Kitri - Marianela Nunez. Carlos Acosta's production was created for The Royal Ballet in 2013.

The costumes are very, very beautiful, colorful, really a holiday of colors (especially the square and the dream scenes). Everyone in the cast dances so that they make you want to dance in place; light, ethereal, emotional, in sync. In fact I danced in place in Act I as it’s my favorite. Beauty, mood, joy, emotion emanated from the stage/the screen. Ballet was a holiday for the senses, a holiday for the soul.

 

The Magic Flute (2017) and Don Quixote (2013) will be broadcasted via YouTube for free (donations are possible/expected) of between 25 December 2020–6 January 2021. Otherwise a lot other performances can be seen on the Opera house’s site on purchase.

So closing this strange year some wishes came through on a different way.

Ballet could be sensuous feast

Despite this blog reported already some events outside Bulgaria, as exhibitions in Vienna or Milan, this will be the first publication in the 10^th years history of the blog in English, however for everything sooner or later there is a first time.  As I’m spending some time in Munich past months I would like to tell about some ballet performances of the Munich state ballet (Bayerisches Staatsballett).

Some guests of the city might consider going to a ballet as life is not just work or study.

This season 2019/2020, I saw Anna Karenina and The Lady with the camellias.

In October I looked on Anna Karenina, a ballet by Christian Spuck on the novel by Lew Tolstoy; choreography Christian Spuck, composer Sergej Rachmaninow, Witold Lutoslawski.

Christian Spuck’s adaptation premiered at the Zurich Ballet in 2014. The Bayerisches Staatsballett dances his Anna Karenina as of November 2017.

I know Anna Karenina’s love story by hearth and saw it told exhaustively in the ballet-dancers acting. The ensemble danced with grace, passion, sadness and many other emotions corresponding to different episodes of the story.

I didn’t like the fact that the stage was mostly empty; Spuck’s intention maybe was to present that characters are as lost in the empty scenery as they are lost in real life. Instead some video projections point towards the action. The audience could feel the psychological process and inner turmoil of Anna through the dance and the darkness coming from the stage. The music was heavy to my taste, in unison with the tragedy through the story; I was familiar with the music of only the first two pieces in the second act.

I didn’t like much the music and the lack of scenery; however I did like very much the dancers’ performance and the costumes; the women in splendid gowns.

Yesterday I saw The Lady with the camellias, a ballet on the novel by Alexandre Dumas; choreography John Neumeier, composer Frédéric Chopin. The novel “La dame aux camellias” has served as model for one of my favorite operas (La Traviata) as well as films and ballets. I saw long time ago an interpretation of The Lady with the camellias of the Sofia opera and ballet and like it very.

In this interpretation the ensemble danced with grace, passion, sadness and many other emotions corresponding to different episodes of the story; we saw lots of emotions but a little bit unclear story. The story is told from backward and forward and if you do not know the synopsis, barely follow the thread. The main character Marguerite Gautier did not seem to me a courtesan. I didn’t like the lack of scenery. I admired the colours of the costumes, the splendid gowns; I admired the ladies flying over the stage. As a whole I liked the abundance of emotions, beauty and grace on the stage. As a lady beside me said: it is wonderful. The audience applauded long after the last act. This performance was a sensuous feast. 

If you have to choose between both ballets I would recommend and would prefer the lighthearted The Lady with the camellias.