Further Reflections on "Like Water for Chocolate"

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In Like Water for Chocolate, I noted that Christopher Wheeldon had advised his audience to come early and read the programme.  I added that that was good advice but not nearly enough.  Those coming to see  Like Water for Chocolate should watch Judith Mackrell's Insight videos:  Insights: Like Water For Chocolate — Beginnings and Origins,  Insights: Like Water for Chocolate – Music and Design and  Insights: Like Water for Chocolate – Towards Opening Night.  As a counsel of perfection, I advised readers to read the novel and see the film,   At that stage, I had done neither but now I have done both greatly enhancing my appreciation of the ballet.

Although the story spans several generations from the death of Tita's father at the shock of learning of his wife's infidelity to the wedding of her niece Esperanza to the doctor's son, Alex, most of the action takes place during the Mexican civil war between 1910 and 1920 near the city of Piedras Negras on the US border.  The book is divided into 12 chapters, one for each month of the year.  The months do not seem to bear any particular relationship to the narrative.  Each one starts with a list of ingredients some of which are quite gargantuan,   Most are for food but one is for matches.  Some of the chapters contain instructions but the novel is no cookbook.  I should be amazed if the author expects her readers to make dishes out of those ingredients.

The ballet is much kinder to Mama Elena than the book.  The scene where Tita reads her mother's correspondence shows the murder of her African American lover.  In the novel, there is nothing sympathetic about her at all.   Offering Rosaura to Pedro is an act of pure malevolence which wrecked the lives of two daughters, one son-in-law and possibly one grandson. She thrashed Tita for supposedly lacing the wedding cake with an emetic.  She tried to commit Tita to a psychiatric hospital which would necessarily have deprived her of the services of the daughter whose happiness was supposed to be sacrificed for care.  She showed the worst kind of hypocrisy in the second haunting by accusing her daughter of immorality when she had given birth to Gertrudis out of wedlock.  Tita banished the ghost by reminding Mama Elens of her hypocrisy.  Her last words to the ghost were words of hate,

Laura Esquivel's portrayal of Pedro is hardly kinder.  He is reprimanded for his folly in accepting the hand of a woman he did not love in order to be closer to her sister in the first chapter.  He neglected his bride for months after her wedding night on the pretext that Tita's cake had made her ill.  At several times in the story, he had the chance to carry Tita away much as Gertrudis had been carried away by her revolutionary captain but he missed every opportunity.  He was resentful of the doctor for his interest in Tita even though the latter had saved his skin literally after a carousel that dislodged an oil lamp.   He was moody, spoilt and not very bright.  Tita was right to send him packing several times.   

My favourite sister is Gertrudis who escaped her mother's thrall by dashing naked to her revolutionary liberator.  In the revolution she becomes a general bringing her soldiers to the ranch.  In celebrations at the ranch, she displays an ability to dance that neither of her parents possessed.  There is a discussion as to how she inherited such skills.  When she gave birth to a dark-skinned child Tita rescued her reputation by revealing her parenthood.

While reflecting on the story I remembered that many of Tita's contemporaries in this and many other countries missed the opportunity to marry.  That was not because of family tradition but because so many men had perished in the First World War.   Muriel Spark mentioned the generation of unmarried women in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.  That was the fate of one of my aunts who was born at about the same time as Tita. Like Tiita she was an excellent cook and needlewoman.   She stayed at my grandmother's home in Heaton Moor until my grandmother died in 1953.  When the family home was sold she had to work as a housekeeper in Wilmslow until her death some 40 years ago,  I was not aware of a Pedro in her life but how would I have known?

In one of my tweets, I said the book was hilarious.  I was very properly pulled up by mg friend Marion Pettit who pointed out all those ruined lives.   But there were some extremely funny passages in the story.  As I read the book last night I chuckled at the thought of all those guests puking in the stream after eating Tita's wedding cake.  Or the thought of Gertrudis's sergeant trying to make sense of a pudding recipe,  Every tragedian leavens his story with humour.

I read Esquivel's novel in a single sitting.   I could not put it down   It is a long time since I last read a novel so quickly.   I rarely have the time for that. Even more rarely do I invest so much time in researching a ballet.  I did so this time because the work is so good.   The public will get a chance to see the ballet on-screen on 23 Jan2023.  That leaves plenty of time to read the book, see the film and watch Judith Mackrell's Insight vieos.   Their enjoyment will be greatly enhanced if they do.

Casanova Second Time Round

The Lowry

Photo Andrew Dunn
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Northern Ballet, Casanova. The Lowry, 6 May 2017, 19:30

I was pretty complimentary about Kenneth Tindall's Casanova when it opened in Leeds on 11 March 2017 (see Casanova - "it has been a long time since I enjoyed a show by Northern Ballet as much as I enjoyed Casanova last night" 12 March 2017). I liked last night's show at the Lowry even better.

I think there are three reasons for that.

The first is that we had a very strong cast that included both of Northern Ballet's remaining premier dancers, Javier Torres and Pippa Moore as well as personal favourites like Hannah Bateman, Abigail Prudames, Antoinette Brooks-Daw and Mlindi Kulashe in important roles.

The second reason for last night's success is that the dancers will have grown used to their roles over the last two months and danced in the confidence that audiences around the country and most of the critics like the show.

Thirdly, I think the dancers were lifted by the venue. The Lowry is a great auditorium, certainly for audiences because seating is comfortable commanding good views of the stage from just about every part of the house, but I think also for performers as the stage is large and it is well equipped for scenery changes and special effects.

The company danced before a receptive crowd and though the house was less than full the warmth of the applause at the end when more than a few rose to their feet more than made up for it. Manchester audiences may be a little bit more critical than Leeds ones as they see Birmingham Royal Ballet, English National Ballet and visiting companies from abroad such as the National Ballet of China and Alvin Ailey as well as Northern Ballet. If a show does well in the second largest conurbation of the United Kingdom it will probably do well anywhere. As the old saying goes, "what Manchester does today, the world does tomorrow."

As I have written a lot about Casanova already, I won't bore readers with a rehash of the plot or the work of the various contributors. They can get all that from Northern Ballet's website and the bibliography below. I will concentrate on the dancers and what made last night's performance even better than the first night.

As I noted above, we had a very strong cast. Giuliano Contadini was the poster boy of the show and deservedly so for he danced Casanova very well but Torres was cast perfectly for the role. Powerful, athletic and passionate, he was how I had always imagined the historical Giacomo Casanova. There is a point towards the end when he has to hold a very uncomfortable pose for what must seem like an age. That was when I appreciated just how good he was.

Another inspired bit of casting was Prudames as Bellino. One of the most touching scenes of the ballet - touching in both senses  - is where Contadini gradually winds her confidence. It was demonstrated at the preview with a commentary from Tindall by Contadini and Dreda Blow (see Casanova Unmasked 16 Feb 2017). Prudames made it work even better for she showed the vulnerability of her character and the sensitivity of their encounter given the disparity in power.

Yet another powerful performance came in the first act where MM (described in the blurb as "an aristocratic nun" and danced by Bateman) seduces Casanova thereby giving the inquisition the excuse they need to throw him into the Leads, the prison on the other side of the Bridge of Sighs.

Constraints of time and space prevent my commending everyone individually, All, dancers and musicians, did well last night.  I congratulate everyone who took part in the show.

As the orchestra pit of the Lowry is a bit more spacious than most I was able to glimpse the orchestra occasionally as it tackled Kerry Muzzey's score. Percussion is important particularly towards the end of the show and I was drawn to the percussionist seated on the back row of the pit as he sounded out the change of mood. Thr Northern Ballet Sinfonia was conducted by Daniel Parkinson last night who interpreted the music well. I am not sure that I appreciated the score as much as I did last night the first time round. Yesterday I particularly liked the first act where there were hints of the 18th century without pastiche.

I also appreciated the sets and lighting more and noticed things like the sort of white smoke that rises from the Sistine Chapel when a new pope is found which opened the show. I am not sure of its significance. I assume it was used in the Grand but, for the life of me, I just can't remember it.  It was, however, very effective owing moe than a little to the cinema which I know to be Tindall's passion (see "A Many Sided Genius, Tindall on Casanova 4 March 2017). Not everything worked quite so well. If, as I hope, this ballet has a second run, t I hope that Tindall takes another look at the flashback scene with its falling pages reminiscent of the snow scene at the end of Nixon's Wuthering Heights. A fine bit of choreography deserves a stronger and more original ending.

It was very good to see Northern Ballet west of the Pennines where the company began. As a Mancunian, I took pride in Northern Dance Theatre's existence long before I ever saw them dance. And when I did see them dance I saw them first in Manchester which is where they performed some of their best work. It would be good to see more of them in our city and there is no reason why they should not do so. After all, the Australian Ballet has a strong base in Sydney as well as Melbourne and the Miami City Ballet has homes in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach as well as Miami. As I have said many times, the company is called Northern Ballet, not Leeds City or even Yorkshire Ballet. If Birmingham Royal Ballet can manage two seasons a year in our city region I see no reason why Northern Ballet could nit do the same if it really wanted to do so.

Bibliography: Reviews and Insights

20 April	Louise Levene	Casanova, Milton Keynes Theatre, UK — a blur of conquests	Financial Times
19 April	Bruce Marriott	Northern Ballet – Casanova – Leeds	Dance Tabs
7 April	Judith Mackrell	Casanova review – too much plot, not enough passion for Northern Ballet's limp lothario	The Guardian
12 March	Mark Brown	Casanova is an impressive and exhilarating evening's ballet – review	Daily Telegraph
12 March	Jane Lambert	Casanova - "it has been a long time since I enjoyed a show by Northern Ballet as much as I enjoyed Casanova last night"	Terpsichore
4 March	Jane Lambert	"A Many Sided Genius" - Tindall on Casanova	Terpsichore
16 Feb	Jane Lambert	Casanova Unmasked	Terpsichore
24 May 2016	Jane Lambert	Casanova	Terpsichore

Positioning Ballet - International Ballet Conference

The Dutch National Ballet will hold a private working conference at its studios in Amsterdam called Positioning Ballet between 10 and 12 Feb 2017 to coincide with the opening of Made in Amsterdam. The Purpose of the conference is to give artistic directors, choreographers and dance journalists from around the world an opportunity to exchange ideas about the future of ballet. The UK will be represented by the Royal Ballet's Director Kevin O'Hare (who also sits on the board of Northern Ballet), Tamara Rojo and Judith Mackrell of The Guardian.

The timetable for the conference is as follows:
Saturday 11th of February
09:30 – 10:15 Walk-in
10:15 – 10:30 Opening
10:30 – 11:45 Talk & discussion: Heritage
11:45 – 12:45 Lunch
12:45 – 14:00 Talk & discussion: Diversity
14:00 – 14:30 Break
14:30 – 16:00 Talk & discussion: Identity
16:00 – 16:20 Short Break
16:20 – 17:00 Wrap up

20:15 Premiere: Made in Amsterdam 1

Sunday 12th of February
11:30 – 14:00 The next step! (guest speakers and lunch)
14:00 Premiere: Made in Amsterdam 2
16:00 Reception

The discussion on "Heritage" covers "the art of programming", "ballet as re-enactment" and "heritage and innovation," There is only an hour and a quarter to cover all that ground - less than the time required for a typical ballet class - and it covers such interesting topics as "Which works are kept in the archive, based on which criteria? When is something still relevant? And when should it be revived?" I for one would just to know the decision-making process by which works like the Royal Ballet's Anastasia and Northern Ballet's Swan Lake are revived. As for "heritage and innovation" I should love to learn whetherTamara Rojo has more to say about shillelagh-wielding wilis.

"Diversity" is a topic very dear to my heart. Only 75 minutes to discuss:

"How can ballet companies better reflect the diversity of the metropolitan society in which they operate? Which steps must be taken in order to make the ballet world more inclusive? It is a fact that the stark differences in our society run along the lines of ethnicity, culture, gender and sexual orientation. During the working conference, we will focus primarily on ethnic and cultural diversity. We will also take a look at some good practices – projects that are successful in diversifying dancers, choreographers, organisation and audience."

On my very limited experience of two galas and half a dozen shows, the audience at the Amsterdam Music Theatre or Stopera seems a little more typical of the population at large than the audience of a ballet night at Covent Garden and certainly The Grand.  But it may be wishful thinking and I have no statistics to back it up. It would be interesting to find out what if any sociological research has been carried out.

Incidentally, it is encouraging that Corinne Vigreux who helped to found Tom Tom sits on the National Ballet's supervisory board.  It is rare for a tech entrepreneur to show such interest in the performing arts - at least in this country.

The last top is "Identity" and includes a discussion on whether it is still possible for ballet companies to reflect their geographical location. The company notes:

"Companies are increasingly engaging in co-production, and choreographers and dancers travel all over the world. This requires individual companies to position themselves clearly."

But was it not ever thus? Petipa was a Frenchman and Pavlova danced everywhere.  Why should a ballet company be like a football team? I am not Welsh but I am a Friend of Ballet Cymru. Too much emphasis on place reduces choice. When was the last time Northern Ballet danced in Birmingham or Birmingham Royal Ballet at The Grand or Alhambra?

I congratulated the National Ballet on this initiative.   I hope they will consider making the discussions available to the public.

A Bright Stream but not exactly a Live Stream

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Bolshoi Ballet, The Bright Stream, The New Stage, Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, 29 April 2012 shown at cinemas on 6 Nov 2016


On Sunday afternoon, cinema audiences around the UK were treated to a recording of a performance of Alexei Ratmansky's revival of The Bright Stream that had taken place on the new stage of the Bolshoi Theatre over 4 years ago. The performance was not actually called a recording though the words "Captured live on Apr 29, 2012" do appear at the bottom of the description of the ballet on Pathe Live's website. The Nottingham Showcase cinema, where I saw The Bright Stream, charged me £12 (even after my over 65 concession) to see the film which is not noticeably less than I would have expected to pay for a live transmission from Covent Garden or Moscow.

Having said all that, the film was still worth watching for it was an opportunity to see a rare example of socialist realism in dance.  Dimitri Shostakovich's score is magnificent and Ratmansky's choreography for this work is just as dazzling as his other creations. In addition, Boris Messerer created some gorgeous sets with biplanes and a steam train crossing the stage at various points. However, the plot is not up to much and the jokes are hardly riveting. Even if Stalin had not taken against Shostakovich for his Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, it is hard to see how this work could have remained in any company's repertoire for long.

The history of the ballet was set out by Judith Mackrell in an article for The Guardian entitled Dance of Death which the Bolshoi theatre reproduced on its website. Mackrell tells us that the work was originally choreographed by Lord Keynes's brother in law, Fedor Lopukhov, which connection probably saved his life. The unfortunate dramaturge,  Adrian Piotrovsky, disappeared with millions of others in Stalin's reign of terror. Shostakovich's career was blighted by Soviet officials before and after the second world war but he stayed alive and was spared the labour camps. The reason for Stalin's displeasure is explained in Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and the muddle surrounding Shostakovich's opera, an article by Mackrell's colleague Ed Vulliamy which appeared on 25 Sept 2015.

In Dance of Death Mackrell wrote:

"In the mass of Shostakovich centenary events that have taken place this year, ballet fans haven’t had much to celebrate. It’s not that the composer ignored the form — between 1929 and 1935, he wrote a trio of full-length ballet scores: The Golden Age, The Bolt and The Bright Stream. All three, though, were banned shortly after their premieres, leaving Shostakovich’s reputation so damaged, he was reluctant ever to write for the lyric stage again.
It’s a cause of great regret for Russia’s monolithic ballet companies, the Kirov and the Bolshoi. Both are aware that, had Shostakovich been given full artistic freedom, he may have become one of the great modern ballet composers — as inspirational for the dance-makers of Soviet Russia as Stravinsky was for choreographers in the west."

She is right. Shostakovich's music is so danceable. Even though he never received another commission to write a ballet score his life's work which includes music for film has been a rich mine for dance makers as Jean-Christophe has shown with his Taming of the Shrew (see Bolshoi's Triumph - The Taming of the Shrew 2 Aug 2016). Shostakovich wrote the music for the piece that my over 55 ballet class at the Northern Ballet Academy performed in Leeds on 28 June 2014 (see The Time of My Life 28 June 2014 which Mel Wong reviewed so generously in The Dance DID go on - Northern Ballet Academy Show 2014 28 June 2014).

The main characters in the ballet are Zina, a former dance student who had married Pyotr an agriculture student and buried herself in the countryside, her friend from ballet school who had stuck with ballet and become a dancer with a touring dance troupe and the male lead in the company who appears in plus fours. There are some lovely bits of mime when Zina recognizes her old friend and they catch up on each other's news. "Look at you!" Zina gestures pointing to her friend's clothes. "Are you married?" asks the dancer by pointing to her ring figure, "and do you have any children?" patting three imaginary heads. "And how about you?" "Oh no! Haven't had an opportunity to meet the right bloke" motions the dancer. Pyotr meets the dancer and becomes infatuated leaving Zina quite desolate which is the only bit of drama in the ballet. Happily the ballet dancer is a good sort and agrees to an elaborate subterfuge to teach her erring husband a lesson. The story gets a bit silly after that with the male lead exchanging his plus fours for a tutu. Better than political satire in Soviet eyes, I suppose, but not really the uplifting stuff that might have inspired Stakhanov and his pals to chisel out a few more lumps of coal each day.

On 29 April 2012 Zina was danced by Svetlana Lunkina, the lead female dancer by Maria Alexandrova, Pyotr by Mikhail Lobukhin and the male lead by Ruslan Skvortsov. I had last seen Skvortsov as Siegfried (see Grigorovich's Swan Lake in Covent Garden 31 July 2016). It was good to see him again in a very different role.

Finally, a message to Janet McNulty whose views on Nixon's Swan Lake are somewhat different from mine. The Bright Stream is another ballet with bikes. If you have not seen it you should. You may like it.

The Australian Ballet's Swan Lake - Murphy won me over

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The Australian Ballet, Swan Lake, Coliseum, 16 July 2016, 14:00

The synopsis in the programme notes were ominous as were some of the reviews in the papers and on BalletcoForum. A lot of parallels had been drawn between the plot of Graeme Murphy's Swan Lake and Prince Charles and Lady Di though Judith Mackrell thought the story saw closer parallels to Giselle (see Australian Ballet: Swan Lake review – a royal tragedy lifted by its leads 14 July 2016 The Guardian). It all sounded very like change for change's sake which I don't like very much at all (see Up the Swannee 17 March 2016). To my great surprise and delight I enjoyed Murphy's version despite the liberties that he took with the story and the score.

I think the reason why I liked Murphy's Swan Lake  so much more than say David Nixon's is that it was a genuine variation upon a theme with some real innovation and not a completely different story with different characters albeit with some bits of Petipa and Ivannov's choreography such as the cygnets' dance bolted on. That was also true of David Dawson's Swan Lake for Scottish Ballet which I saw in Liverpool last month (see Empire Blanche: Dawson's Swan Lake 4 June 2016). I hesitate to use the expression "traditional Swan Lake" because ballets evolve over time and Geraldine Morris reminded us in Tell Tale Steps 2 that there wasn't much Petipa or Ivanov in the Swan Lake that she danced in the 1960s but if we take Anthony Dowell's production for the Royal Ballet as the meme Murphy did not stray all that far from it.

The plot of Dowell's Swan Lake and of every similar version is Siegfried's betrayal of Odette. Murphy explored that theme as did Dawson though their Odettes were very different. I have to say that I prefer Dawson's as his Odette is nobody's victim but Murphy's is interesting all the same.  She is head over heals in love with her husband but he still hankers after another (hence the parallels with Lady Di). When she realizes that her marriage is somewhat crowded she flirts with just about everything in trousers and creates a terrible scene which ends in her committal to a psychiatric hospital beside a lake staffed by nurses who appear to be members of a religious order with a scary swan like headgear (a bit like the Ursuline sisters though I had always thought they were a teaching order). I think it must be the mad scene that reminded Mackrell of Giselle though Siegfried's philandering reminded me more of James's two timing of Effie and the sylph in La Sylphide. During her stay in the hospital Odette imagines herself swimming on the waters of the lake with its swans and Siegfried coming to look for her.

Odette recovers her sanity. She gatecrashes a party given by Odile where Siegried sees Odette in a new light and falls in love with her. This time it is Odile who loses herself in a frenzy of jealousy. She summonses the psychiatrist and scary nurses but Odette scarpers with Siegfried and the whole court scouring the countryside for her.  I should point out that Odile is never referred to as such in the programme. She is called "Baroness von Rothbart" but that is not such a big departure as it sounds for Odile is Rothbart's daughter in the Dowell version. There is no Rothbart as such but his function is served by a lugubrious psychiatrist in charge of the psychiatric hospital.

There are some interesting transpositions.  It is Odette and not Odile who dances fouettés in the mad scene. The music that announces Rothbart and Odile's arrival in the black act of Dowell announces Odette's presence at the Baroness's party. Odile prowls outside the hospital looking pointedly at her watch as Siegfried visits his wife just as Odette flutters outside the palace as Siegfried declares his love for Odile in Dowell's version. Both Dowell and Murphy end with Odette jumping in the lake. There is a dramatic epaulement in Murphy when Odette and Siegfried spot each other for one last time before Odette is dragged down into the deep taking the draperies representing the water with her.

Several commentators talked about Murphy's use of contemporary dance. I didn't see all that much contemporary as opposed to classical vocabulary and what I did see seemed to work very well.  For instance, I liked some of the more unconventional lifts very much indeed as well as steps that gave the impression of skating.  Having nearly killed myself as a 66 year old Rumpole trying to learn the cygnets' and Hungarian dances and swans' entry at the KNT Swan Lake intensive last year I was pleased to find that they were all there and not too different from the versions that Jane Tucker had taught us unlike Dawson's where the cygnets became a pas de quatre.

For all its cleverness Murphy's Swan Lake would have been nothing without some excellent dancers. Robyn Hendricks was a perfect fit for Murphy's Odette. Tall and commanding but also delicate and vulnerable she was as great an actor as she was a dancer.  The expression "dance-actors" is often used by critics but except for Ed Watson I could think of very few people who merited the description. Ms. Hendricks is certainly one who does.  She was matched by Amy Harris as Baroness Rothbart who was captivating in the jealousy scene.  Earlier this year I saw Ted Brandsen's Mata Hari in Amsterdam (see Brandsen's Masterpiece 14 Feb 2016). That dance is how I imagine Mata Hari in real life. Partnering both Odette and Odile magnificently. Rudy Hawkes was a great Siegfried.  Murphy's Siegfried is a complex character. Not a complete bastard despite the way he treated Odette though someone who needed chastisement. Hawke understood his character well.  Every Swan Lake needs what the Bolshoi call an "evil genius" and that lot fell to Tristram Message as the psychiatrist. Not as big a role as Dowell's Rothbart but just as important to the story.

Looking through the dancers' bios I notice that nearly all of them come from Australia and many of them were trained at the Australian Ballet School. Given its relatively small population, the existence of two other fine companies in Brisbane and Perth and the fact that it continues to export fine dancers like Steven McRae and Jenna Roberts to us, Australia's contribution to dance is massive. I shall return to London for Cinderella next week and I am looking forward to it tremendously.

Ballet Cymru Am Byth

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It is not often that my heart leaps when I see the nominations for the National Dance Awards but it did this time when I read that Ballet Cymru has been nominated for the best independent company award (see Judith Mackrell's National Dance Awards 2015 nominations: ice dance, flamenco and independent companies celebrated 29 Oct 2015 Guardian Dance Blog). I am very fond of that company. Last month I visited them at their studios in Newport (see Ballet Cymru at Home 5 Oct 2015). Next Friday I will be in Newport for the première of Traces Imprinted, the new work by Marc Brew, which will be performed with TIR and Celtic Concerto.

One of the reasons why I like Ballet Cymru is that they worked with wheelchair dancers and others in Stuck in the Mud. Marc Brew choreographed that work to a score by Jack White who has composed the music for Cinderella which you can hear above. Brew has also created work for Candoco Dance Company which has been nominated for the Outstanding Company award. That is another company that admire. Founded in 1991 it describes itself as "the company of disabled and non-disabled dancers". This is a company with first class productions which also manages to provide first class outreach opportunities for the general public. It is up against English National Ballet, New Adventures and Northern Ballet for that award. Even though I would normally support any of those three companies for that award I am rooting for Candoco on this occasion.

Three of my favourite male dancers, Steven McRae, Vadim Muntagirov and Ed Watson are up for the best male dancer category and I am conflicted because I cannot choose between them as I like them all. I have seen superb performances by all of them this year but the one that touched my heart was Muntagirov's pas de deux from Swan Lake with Daria Klimentova at Northern Ballet's Sapphire gala in Leeds on 14 March 2015 (see Sapphire 15 March 2015). I never thought I would ever see them dance together again and they were the highlight of my evening.

The choice is slightly easier for best female dancer. After seeing her Juliet in the Albert Hall last year it has to be Alina Cojocaru (see Romeo and Juliet in the Round - Saturday 14 June 2014 20 June 2014) though I am also a great fan of Alessandra Ferri and Marianela Nuñez. I am delighted to see Laura Morera in the outstanding female performance category for her role as Lise (see The Best Fille Ever 18 April 2015 and my flat footed attempt to congratulate the ballerina in Laura Morera 25 Aug 2015). I am also pleased for Eve Mutso to be nominated for her performance in A Streetcar Named Desire. I saw Luciana Ravizzi dance the role when I saw the ballet (see Scottish Ballet's Sreetcar 2 April 2015) but I have seen Mutso in other works this year and she never fails to delight me.

I would have expected Streetcar to have been nominated for best classical choreography as well as Darius James's Cinderella but what do I know? However, I was delighted to see nominations for David Bintley's The King Dances and William Bracewell's performance in that work. For me the performance of that work to celebrate Bintley's 20th anniversary as artistic director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet and its 25th anniversary in Birmingham was was one of the highlights of the year (see In Praise of Bintley 21 June 2015).

I am conscious that I have not mentioned a lot of people who deserve mention. As I come from the North of England I take particular pleasure in Kenneth Tindall's nomination for two categories as well as Northern Ballet's and Tobias Batley's for outstanding company and best male dancer respectively. I congratulate everyone and every company that has been nominated, I thank them all for their work and wish them all well for the future.