I finally got to see a performance of Akram Khan’s Giselle. Ah, Giselle, the hallmark and highlight of the traditional romantic repertoire. I love it. I will attend any and every performance of Giselle that I can, when the willis enter the stage one at a time I will never cease to get goose bumps with each hop. I’ve seen Akram Khan’s version on video and I have seen several of his works in person and loved each one. I enjoy his sense of movement and evocative use of stark color and imagery. No one else does so much with so little. An entire stage can be dirt brown or stone gray and it is startling and darkly beautiful. I was able to attend English National Ballet perform the ballet at Sadler Wells. So, first of all let me say this was the first time I took the tube to Sadler Wells, and it was a bit of an adventure. I’ve been told that Apple maps are better in England than Google maps and I’ve also been using the TFL Go app but neither were being 100% kind to me on this trip and I found myself walking around the back of Sadler Wells so when leaving I got completely turned around and had to hail a cab back to the hotel. I do love Sadler Wells though. As many theatres in London, it is small and intimate and probably doesn’t have a bad seat in the house. I was halfway back center in the stalls or orchestra as we refer to it in America. So, I had a crazy good view. The sound was extremely loud, at times I wish it were not quite so loud but it was effective to the performance on the stage so I can’t complain. The story is a concentrated version of the original. It’s like Khan took the whole ballet and squeezed it down to its essence and then put that on stage, thick and rich with raw emotion that almost stings your eyes. Giselle tender but defiant when her corpse rises it is both horrifying and achingly beautiful. This ballet is not for the faint of heart but no sweat if you are hard of hearing. If you have the heart for the complex and the emotionally charged, you will love this ballet. I attended with a friend who is new to ballet, and she did not care for it but she has also never seen the original, so I feel that if you’ve seen and enjoyed the traditional version of Giselle, it probably much more accessible than as a stand alone without context. Or if you are a fan of Akram Khan then maybe it’s less out of context to the romantic story of Giselle.  I was thrilled to finally witness it in person and no less thrilled when I walked out of the theatre in the wrong direction. 

The second ballet of the trip was the opening night of Alice performed by the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House. Unlike Sadler Wells, ROH is huge and decadent, and I adore it. I am just always drawn to the Royal Opera House. Sitting in those red seats is like Christmas morning. Speaking of which, there were loads of little kids at this performance which I hadn’t considered but I am always surprised at how well-behaved British children are. The gaggle of little girls that sat in front of me were all giggles and silliness before the performance and during intermissions, but they were perfection once the lights went down. Two little girls that were sitting in front of the pre-hen party kept giving the gaggle side eye when they got a bit loud: like, keep it down, you are making us all look bad! Adorable and a bit hysterical. I have to say I didn’t realize when I booked what a great night it was to be. Bennet Gartside was making his comeback from injury as was Steven McRae. And Lauren Cuthbertson was to make the move from being the original Alice to the Queen of Hearts. Francesca Hayward was our Alice and William Bracewell was Jack. The great Gary Avis played the Duchess.  This is now his wheelhouse, and he owns it, baby! No one does these fabulous character dancer roles like Gary. He loves it big and over the top and plays it to the hilt but also in such a way that you never roll your eyes at the hysteria instead you can’t help but absolutely love it. It was great to see Benn Gartside make it back. Benn has been a great supporter of adult ballet and inclusiveness of adult learners to the ballet world going so far as to create Everybody Ballet where a person can take a ballet class at ROH in the same practice rooms as all the ROH greatest of the greats. I’ve taken class with Benn, and it was priceless. I hope to be able to do that again someday. If you are ever in London and want to take a class, I cannot recommend Everybody Ballet with Bennet Gartside hard enough. And I would also encourage each of us to be a cheerleader for Benn and his return to the stage. Honestly, he is an awesome dancer and a lovely human. It was also wonderful to see Steven McRae again. I have seen Alice before, and I’ve seen him perform the Mad Hatter. He’s slowed it down a bit. He used to be all tapping like the wind and spinning like a top but injury and maybe a bit of age has slowed him down slightly. Still, he does that Mad Hatter justice, and he too is a great dancer who simply has been plagued with injury and has had to fight back so I have a ton of respect for him. It was great to see him on stage. As for Lauren Cuthbertson, I just love her. Lauren’s Alice is the Alice that I’ve seen before and turned me into an Alice fan because I don’t really care for that story at all. My first exposure to this ballet was with National Ballet of Canada and no shade on them, they rock, but I didn’t like it. Then I found myself at ROH with Lauren on the stage and my eyes were opened. But time, my friends, is both friend and foe to each of us and now Lauren has moved on to play the Queen of Hearts and she was immense. She had the entire theatre in the palm of her hands and the toes of her pointe shoes. I was so happy to be a part of the house that gave her the love that she so well has earned. I guess it’s funny that I’ve spend so much time discussing dancers who weren’t the principal characters of this ballet but for my ballet loving heart, it was all about the OGs that show us all how to fight the good fight and do what you love best more than anything else. Love your life, love your work and fight for it so that wherever you land in it, you’ve earned something great. For Bennet, Steven, and Lauren it was an entire theatre on their feet whooping and applauding their love not just for a performance, that was great by the way, but for all they have put in over the years. We gave them love and I’m grateful to have been part of the audience because I would have been the only one standing if I had to but I’m glad that everyone else agreed. As for Francesca and William, they were fantastic. I really like Francesca, sometimes I’m not sure if she’s found herself as a dancer completely but she is lovely, like truly beautiful actually. William is the same, tall, and handsome and a lovely dancer but watching him dance you feel there is something that still needs to be found or completed but that he is on his way. When I think about it, that’s the cruelty of ballet. It takes time for a dancer to find all the parts inside in order to give more than just a good performance but to bring an audience to tears, create a goosebump evoking wind from the stage, or make us each and collectively hold our breathes until the curtain falls. And then the body starts to fail and everything gets harder. In many ways life it like that for each of us in our careers, our life callings, but for ballet dancers, I think it’s much harsher as it is more apparent. When they are the most beautiful that is when things begin to fade. Like roses on the vine, at the peak of fragrance and finery, the next day they begin to lose petals. There are just some dancers so fine that as the petals fall on stage, they are able to find a new beauty to remain in their rightful place in the lights and continue to give us joyful nights at the theatre. Sometimes I’m sad that the dancers that I grew up watching are no longer the stars of the stage but I’m grateful for all the dancers who continue because it makes it easier at accept change and to adapt accordingly. 

I look forward to the next time I find myself in the magic of a darkened theatre and I hope you find yourself there too. 

All will be well, 

Lorry