The Beauty of ballet

There is something so magnificent about the Royal Albert Hall. As you approach it from South Kensington tube station, turning the corner past all of the glamorous red brick apartments on Kensington Gore, there it resides in all of its impressive rounded glory. You can’t help but feel a tinge of excitement as soon as you see it. In a way I suppose it’s our Colosseum – but rather than housing lions and gladiators, it has housed some of the greatest artists that have ever lived. I’ve seen some wonderful things in the venue and also some not wonderful things, but that never mattered, as stepping inside this historical landmark is always such a special feeling. I used to dream of holding my wedding there. A registrar or priest would be suspended from the ceiling, the groom and myself flying in somehow to greet him in the air whilst 5000+ guests sit beneath us. I’m getting married next year actually but unfortunately The Royal Albert Hall is out of question. The groom has chosen to marry me despite my theatrical and camp tendencies. I guess finding 5000 guests would be a bit of a bother too. My visit might not have been wedding venue browsing, but it did have a purpose. I went to see The Beauty of Ballet – a celebration of ballet and music with guests from Birmingham Royal Ballet joining forces with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Barry Wordsworth. It’s often quite odd seeing ballet in the round, as for me the hall is such an iconic music venue. It acts like one too. You can buy a range of snacks and drinks and take them all inside. As a regular ballet goer at The Royal Opera House, where food and drink is strictly prohibited inside the auditorium, it was a thrill treating myself to a big pint in a plastic cup and guzzling it during the first act. There was something quite charming about watching the orchestra play masterpieces by Glinka and Khachaturian whilst also listening to the crunch of a sausage roll from the teenage boy sitting next to me. I know how pretentious it is to comment on this juxtaposition but it’s something I love about the venue and I was totally there for it.

Barry Wordsworth made a lovely introductory speech outlining what we could expect from the evening, but also used it as an opportunity to talk about how grateful he, and all of the dancers and musicians, were to be back performing after the pandemic. His speech was emotional and was aptly followed by a performance of the Act 2 pas de deux from Swan Lake by Brandon Lawrence and Celine Gittens. They dance so beautifully together and didn’t disappoint in this pas de deux. Lawrence has such a perfect build for dancing the classics and his tall frame and passionate expression were a perfect pairing with Gitten’s elegant and languid dancing. From a tragic ballet to something sweeter, next came Lachlan Monaghan and Yu Kurihara in The Nutcracker pas de deux. Technically sublime, the two sauntered across the stage as sweetly as a sugar plum and I was particularly impressed with Kurihara whose technical ability shone across the auditorium. Next up came Mathias Dingman and Beatrice Parma, who stormed onto the stage for the Don Quixote pas de deux. They’re slightly mismatched in height but for something like this it didn’t matter. A problem throughout the show was the small stage that the dancers had to perform on. This was really highlighted by Dingman whose ferocious power and stellar virtuoso dancing needed more space to support him. At one point I thought he would fly off the stage but he remained collected. He certainly whetted the appetite of those looking forward to seeing BRB’s full length production of Don Quixote next year. Parma was a beautiful complement to Dingman, with cheeky Spanish flavour and natural flare. She reminds me of a young Viviana Durante and I’m intrigued to see where her career takes her – I know that I’ll be watching. From the bold to the sensual, with Max Maslen and Yaoqian Shang taking to the stage to perform the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. Shang has all of the makings of a wonderful MacMillan dancer and I particularly loved the fluidity of her arms and legs. Maslen was raring to go and gave Romeo’s solo big jumps and powerful turns which seemed to circulate all the way around the auditorium. Together they were in perfect unison with the music, swooning and building with Prokofiev’s powerful score. Maslen looked completely ready for the role and I hope he gets the opportunity next time it’s performed. We were then treated to the Garland Dance from Sleeping Beauty performed by dancers from The Royal Ballet School. Although it was a little tight on the small stage, they did extremely well and their beaming smiles radiated to every seat in the house. It’s always a special moment to watch the students and wonder where their careers will take them. In this instance, they all looked wonderful to me and having the exposure and experience of dancing on such an iconic stage will stand them in good stead for the future I’m sure. Lastly, we were treated to two bright stars from Birmingham Royal Ballet – Cesar Morales and Momoko Hirata – who danced Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky pas de deux. I have seen many dance this piece, from the brash to the subtle, but never have I seen it danced with such grace and elegance. It’s a piece that can really show off bravado and technique, but with Morales and Hirata it felt more beautiful. Rather than trying to show off to each other, it felt like watching a young couple in love, dancing together out of pure joy for one another. I think this is something that makes Hirata and Morales special. Their respect for each other makes whatever they dance together a dream to watch. Hirata has the most beautiful arms and she defines the word elegance, and Morales is equally as stylish and graceful. My only sadness was not to see them perform the piece on a stage double the size as I think it would have been even more beautiful to watch.

Interspersed with all of the ballet segments were classical pieces performed solely by the orchestra. These were stunning and the adagio from Spartacus and the Capriccio Espagnol were particular highlights for me as they demonstrated the immaculate performance from every member of the orchestra. Wordsworth is able to build them to a dazzling crescendo which reaches the heights of the auditorium, and this was shown in full with the final piece: the famous 1812 Overture, which even featured indoor fireworks and sparklers. I think I aged fifty years when the first one went off, but other than that, who doesn’t love a theatrical ending to such a delightful evening? As the audience stood up to give a standing ovation, dusting sausage roll pastry and popcorn off their laps, I thought to myself what a lovely evening I had had once again in The Royal Albert Hall. As I was walking back to the tube, I overheard several people saying how much they enjoyed it and how it made them want to see a Birmingham Royal Ballet performance. If that isn’t a sign of a successful evening, then I don’t know what is.