19 March 2014 at 10.47pm | 112 Comments
#ROHbeauty always wanted to see Sleeping Beauty. Not disappointed. Just brilliant. Sarah Lamb fab as Aurora :-)
— helen emmett (@hellbell31) March 19, 2014
#ROHbeauty loved Elizabeth Harrod as Fairy 'Violente' as well as in the Pas de trois of the third act @TheRoyalBallet
— dansomanie (@dansomanie) March 19, 2014
SO in love with Sarah Lamb and @_stevenmcrae as a couple. Or just Steven McRae on his own... #ROHbeauty
— Georgina Wells (@Wells15G) March 19, 2014
Absolutely the best way to spend a Wednesday evening, I think I was 6 when I last went to the ballet #beautiful #ROHbeauty
— Cathryn Rogers (文音) (@CathrynJane_x) March 19, 2014
That was a fantastic performance from Sarah Lamb and Steven Mcrae as normal! Of course everyone else who danced :) #ROHbeauty
— KT (@kaatieTompkins) March 19, 2014
#ROHbeauty ... lilac #fairy u were my favourite! The music was soooo BEAUTIFUL :)))
— Tara von Spreckelsen (@Tara_Harmony) March 19, 2014
Broadcast technology obviously not up to the genius that is @_stevenmcrae He turned into a spinney blur at one point #ROHbeauty
— Rosie Cox (@RosieCox007) March 19, 2014
told my mates I'm watching Man U but enjoying this much more with Mrs McKinney #ROHbeauty in Paisley Showcase
— Stephen McKinney (@Glasgow0141) March 19, 2014
Everything to do with #ROHbeauty was flawless. The music, dancing, costumes, just everything was complete perfection.
— Jessica Williams (@JessieWills1005) March 19, 2014
What did you think of The Sleeping Beauty in cinemas?
The next live cinema relay will be The Winter's Tale on 28 April 2014. Find your nearest cinema and sign up to our newsletter.
19 March 2014 at 10.47pm
This article has been categorised Ballet and tagged audience, by Marius Petipa, cinema, Production, review, Social Media, The Sleeping Beauty, twitter, your reaction
This article has 112 comments
I am pleased that I could see. Amazing performance.
My cinema opened an extra two screens to fit all the audience! It was a resounding success, just beautiful in every way, costumes, scenery, and sublime dancing. Loved Carabosse and her rats, the lilac fairy, and Aurora and her prince. Congratulations! Better than actually being in the theatre!
Hello all,
You can now find the complete cast list for the cinema broadcast here http://www.roh.org.uk/events/9jv8w
All best,
Rachel
Absolutely brilliant, will be going to see more, my loved that she could clearly see close up what the dancers feet were actually doing.
Absolutely brilliant, will be going to see more live performances at the cinema. My daughter loved that she could clearly see close up what the dancers feet were actually doing, and the expressions on their faces.
Amazing performance was in "dreamland" loved it so much, the dancing, costumes, just fantastic will see again and again thank you .
What a great opportunity to see such a superb ballet. Thank you! The dancers were truly magnificent, the choreography was simply marvelous, the orchestra were brilliant and the costumes were stunning: Sleeping Beauty live from the ROH in Covent Garden is the best ballet I have ever seen.
The best night at the cinema I`ve had in years. Breath taking!! Loved all the additional filming ..and our lovely D`Arcy!!
Fantastic living in a rural area Keswick Cumbria it was lovely to see behind the scenes. The discipline & sheer hard work the skill & costumes were quite breathtaking .More please.
Did you watch it in Ambleside?
EVERYTHING about this performance was absolutely beyond praise. What a fabulous, faultless production - my granddaughter and I so thoroughly enjoyed it!
The sheer hard graft required by all to present this is phenominal.
Congratulations to all concerned.
Using cinemas in this way is the most brilliant development. Congratulations to the person behind the idea.
Last night was wonderful and the 'extras' are a real treat. Sarah Lamb and Steven McRae were truly superb.
Sleeping Beauty at Reigate. Glorious dancing. Zooming in on parts of dancers' bodies spoilt the illusion of being there and it would be great if the Director could keep the stage floor in view so one can FEEL the leaps. A wonderful introduction for newcomers to classical dance. Can't wait for the next. Thank you for making it accessible.
Live cinema screening is a wonderful opportunity for those of us who are unable to get to the theatre to enjoy the magic of the ballet as it is happening. It was my first experience in this format and will definitely not be my last. A spectacular production, well done to all those involved in bringing it to the wider audience.
I loved it! Will go again. Would never in my life ever have got to Covent Garden to see ballet, completely beyond my budget and geographical range. Why has it taken so long? I am deaf and cannot appreciate the music any longer so a few subtitles would be so good during the discussions. Please try to achieve this for all of us out there who cannot hear and make big thing of it!!
Thanks for the suggestion Jackie, I will pass it on to our cinema team.
Best wishes
Ellen
I saw the admirable and astonishing performance in Bielefeld; Germany and I am so glad that it is possible to witness such perfection here in the countryside! Thank you very much!
Everything was wonderful and I am looking forward to the next performance!
Amazing performance!
Absolutely brilliant, will be going to see more live performances at the cinema. It was just beautiful in every way, costumes, scenery, music and sublime dancing.
j'ai assisté pour la première fois de ma vie à un ballet (j'ai 57 ans).
Ce spectacle était tout simplement magnifique. Tout était splendide, des costumes aux décors. bravo ! On y était.
Michèle de Mantes la Jolie - France
Totally sublime. A fantastic performance by everyone. Bring on the next one !
These broadcasts are a thrilling development of the performing arts. The quality of production matches the dazzling onstage performances, and the inclusive nature of the whole process - Tweets from across the world - mean that we are part of a global audience all enjoying a special moment, all together. It can only enhance the Royal Ballet (and opera) worldwide reputation and bring more people flocking to Covent Garden. Meantime, down in deepest Devon, I was able to pay £17.50 and have the best seat in the house.
Having said all that, can I just add that last night's production was spectacular, and I want to thank the principals, dancers, orchestra, set and costume makers and production team for providing me with an unforgettable night.
Absolutely unmissable! Very Well done, and take you on a fantastic ballet fairy tail .BRILLIANT!!!!
Thank you all, greetings to Christopher Carr for the best evening ever at the cinema in Barnsley South Yorkshire, more please. Lovely wedding scene, Stephen & Sarah amazing,beautiful bluebird and Florina The members of our U3A - Theatre Group and grand children look forward eagerly to Winter's Tale.Hurray for live transmissions.
This was a brilliant performance both by the main characters and the rest of the performers including the orchestra.
my congratulations to anybody that was involved with the production, it was a wonderful evening
My thanks to all
It was a privilege to watch last nights performance - brilliant. But the experience at Fulham Vue was marred by the sound not coming on until long after the opening of the ballet, preceded by occasional bursts of music.A not very happy audience. Then even before the final curtain fell the transmission came to a sudden end to be replaced by advertisements for The Vue Experience. Our experience not happy one.Is this the fault of the cinema?
Howell Isaac
Dear Howell
Sorry to hear that your experience was marred by sound problems. This was a local issue and I've passed your comment on to our cinema team who will follow up with Fulham Vue.
Best wishes
Ellen
Sarah Lamb was fantastic, especially her the artistic performance. I enjoied all the fairies. The main stage magnificent, as usual, in this pure clasic Beauty. Congratulations. Thank you for connecting Royal ballet to the rest of the world . From Madrid.
Thank you for screening the Sleeping Beauty. It was enchanting. Sarah Lamb was so serene and Steven McRae presented her beautifully. I also really enjoyed the dancers in blue in the last act.
Now looking forward to watching a 'Winters Tale' here in rural France.
This was my first ballet, and I took my Mum and Grandmother as a birthday gift for them both. We loved it, but the Odeon cinema we were at lost connection. We're so disappointed not to see the end, and not sure if we should go again, if we're not guaranteed to see the whole performance.
Dear Clare
Very sorry to hear that - how disappointing! Could you let me know which cinema you experienced a problem with and our cinema team will investigate. I would suggest approaching the cinema to see if they can do anything for you - it is rare to experience problems unless there are high winds (they affect satellites).
Best wishes
Ellen
My wife and I sat in a small cinema in Alfaz del PI ( North Costa Blanca; Spain) we were entranced by your wonderfull production of Sleeping Beauty. It was fantastic, the atmosphere was electric. Darcy was magnificent with her comments and introduction. The whole production, costumes, presentation and cast were magnificent. We watched the curtain calls and applauded! We left ,walking on air, happy, feeling privileged to have seen such a performance. Thank you so much....We paid 9.50€ each!!! Amazing!!
We enjoyed a fantastic evening at our local cinema in Barnsley. Sarah Lamb and Steven Mcrae were superb. I loved the fact that we could see everything up close even the orchestra. Thank you for bringing the Royal Ballet to local venues
Hi Ellen,
We were at the Odeon in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. I have contacted them too.
Thanks
Clare
Thanks Clare, I've passed that on.
Best
Ellen
Thank you so much for the relay of Sleeping Beauty, which we greatly enjoyed in the Regal Cinema, Wadebridge, Cornwall. The performance was wonderful and the video quality was excellent. Sadly, the sound briefly cut out every 10 minutes throughout the performance, which was enough to frustrate and distract. I do hope this can be fixed as it rather spoiled a very fine event.
Thanks for letting us know, Mike. I have passed on details of the problem to the cinema team and they will investigate.
Best wishes
Ellen
Third ballet at Huntingdon. It just gets better. We both love Darcey, and Sarah and Steven were a perfect match. All of participants were fantastic. Keep them coming ROH.
Sublime, beautiful, suberb, I cried with emotion..
Thank you to everyone for a wonderful evening. Lamb and McRae - a brilliant partnership. I shall be booking for 'A Winter's Tale'.
Absolutely fabulous, thank you so much for providing this service. We watched in Tavira, Portugal. The ballet was wonderful and I think that we had the best seats in the house, marvellous to be able to see everything so close up. Everyone was superb. Looking forward to the next one.
Being able, in Cardigan, to attend such wonderful performances by such a brilliantly talented cast, is a true priviledge. The camera work and presentatiion show all the cast to best effect. Can only add to all the comments so far made. Thank you.
This has to be the definitive production of The Great Petipa Ballet.Sarah Lamb is all classical restraint,every arabesque perfect,Stephen Mcrae is a danseur noble of the first degree,his wonderful stage manners are that of Anthony Dowell.His dizzying turns in the Act 3 pas de deux were breathtaking.The whole company were on top form.The Royal Ballet are still the only company in the world to justice to this ballet,long may they do so.
Bill Woolhouse.Wellingborough.
Watched it in Shrewsbury, breathtaking, Stephen Mcrae was the star for me
We had a wonderful time yesterday watching Sleepping Beauty in the Cascais Shoppping cinema. Sarah Lamb was magnificient and the Lilac Fairy fantastic. Everyone acted very professionally and it was like emerging in a fairy tale. I've seen lots of live sleeping beauty but never like this one. The blue birds were also very very good. The search for the enchanted castle with all that dark green scenery falling was quite real. I thank you for this broadcast and wish one day I can watch one of yours live from a distant city like Otawwa, Abu.
-dabi, Lima, Mendonza or Melbourne. Thank you so much!!!!! Alice - Portugal
Had a fantastic evening with friends at "The Sleeping Beauty" last night, in The Odeon, Swadlincote, Derbyshire. Yet again, the cinema had to open two screens to fit the audience in. Sarah Lamb was Aurora, a ballerina who lacks appeal for me personally. Apart from one or two "ooops" moments, she is technically brilliant, is but coolly regal, rather than joyful and exhilarated. Her serenity was best seen in the Act II Vision Scene. It was her partner, Steve McRae as the Prince who was the real star of the evening and he managed to overshadow everyone else. He has all the elegance of Anthony Dowell and all the dazzle of Nureyev. All the fairies were beautiful in their fiendishly difficult but unrewarding variations and Kristen McNally's Carabosse was a skilful interpretation - brilliant costume too - malevolent and sexy at the same time. So very different from the warty old crone played by Robert Helpmann/Frederick Ashton years ago. Absolutely adored pretty, dainty Yuhui Choe as Princess Florine. As a company the mime scenes are all impeccably played with a style that no other company has.(Please re-install the Odette/Siegfried mime in Act II of "Swan Lake".) Well done to eveyone and thank you so much for making these performances available to us.
Two minor issues for cinema audiences: the backdrops were poorly lit and difficult to see in Act I and II. Also the printed cast list handed out was abridged, so I had no idea who danced the Prologue Fairies, Florestan and his two sisters, Red Riding Hood and the Wolf or Puss in Boots and the White Cat. (I'd like to know!)
As we all drifted off homewards, the question on everyone's lips was "When will the ROH release the next season of performances?"
Good point re abridged cast list. I like to see the rankings of the artists in minor roles.
Brilliant in every respect as usual. I've seen a dozen SBs and (except of course for the matchless Cojacaru & Kobburg) never seen a grand pas done as well as Sarah Lamb & Steven McRae who performed it faultlessly. Why is it only me that applauds in the cinema? Enjoyed the different production - made a nice change.
We enjoyed the performance in the cinema very much. Thanks. I am no expert but to me some of the dancing of the principals was stunning. I did notice a lot of blurring of fast-moving legs in the last Act. Someone above noted this also. Is this inevitable in a relay?
As in Giselle I also sometimes felt the cinema view was not quite right. For example,ee saw a group of dancers in one medium-long shot and for a while all the feet were more or less cut off though. I appreciate, however, that often we get better angles than the theatre audience. From our point of view the boat trip of the Fairy and Prince was gorgeous. I really felt they were moving through miles of countryside.
Hi Erica,
Glad you enjoyed it.
With regards the blurring, we are transmitting at 50 interlaced fields per second, the same as TV in the UK, so blurring shouldn't have been too much of a problem except on very fast movement. Films usually run at 24 full frames per second (fps), which is too slow for the fast movement in ballet, however I believe that some Cinemas have to do a local conversion to scale the picture for their projector and possibly convert to 24 fps, which could result in more blurring.
Could you let us know which cinema you were at, and we can try and find out if there is anything we can do to improve things?
Regards,
Mark Thackeray
Broadcast Engineer, Royal Opera House
It's lucky to enjoy such wonderful performance near my home in Gifu , Japan. I' m very happy to see all beauty including the music, the costume and views.
Thank you.
We saw SB at the Odeon in Dorchester and found the whole of the ballet very poorly lit. I don't usually like close ups but last night without them the dancers disappeared into the blackness. Performances were excellent. Loved Bluebird and Princess Florine and Florestan and sisters especially Florestan. Unfortunately, the whole show cut out just before Stephen Macrae's second solo piece in the Grand Pas and didn't come back till the final bows although the sound was coming through well. A bit deflating for us. I sympathise with David Wilson - they won't applaud in Dorchester either.
Dear Valerie
I've passed on your comments about the lighting to our cinema team.
Very sorry to hear about you losing the stream in Dorchester - I will also report this issue.
Best wishes
Ellen
Spent the most fantastic evening at the Vue cinema Edinburgh What else can you say about the Royal Ballets production of Sleeping Beauty Beautifully danced, technically perfect, costumes divine.
We have already booked our seats for A Winters Tale
I saw "Beauty" in 1945 at Opera House when I was13. All my life in ballet, I thought the performance quite wonderful. There was such clarity and attak. The Orchestra were quite magnificent. The first time I have seen "cinema" performance, A>S>
A pleasure from beginning to end, and it got better as it went on, with the climax being Stephen McRae's amazing jumps and spins. Breathtaking! Sarah Lamb was not convincing as a 16-year-old, I found. Loved Carabosse, esp. her costume and her rats. Yuhui Choe and Valentino Zucchetti were brilliant as Florine and Bluebird - she so pretty, he so dazzling with verve. The young man in the pas de trois was excellent too. Nice to see Gary Avis as a suitor, and Eric Underwood made a very attractive one too. Elizabeth McGorian was as usual a lovely warm noble Queen. I too would like a cast list: were some of the girls in the set pieces Royal Ballet School students? The pages deserve a mention too. Wonderful to be able to see the costumes close up. Not too many feet cut off by the camera crew this time. I didn't used to like this ballet, but now I can actually SEE it, I do! And the audience in Swindon was better behaved than in the Amphitheatre. Only one sweet wrapper rustler.
We had a fabulous evening in Preston. First time we had seen a "cinema" performance and it was just stunning. All the dancers were superb, the orchestra marvellous and the costumes beautiful. So glad that friend told us about the performance. Thank you all so much
Loved it! Here are five reasons why I will be attending live cinema screenings again: http://iheartballet.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/reasons-to-attend-roh-live-cinema.html
I took a friend to see my 3rd ballet at the Odeon Trowbridge to find the satellite connection halted 10 minutes before the end. No one appeared to explain the fault and on exiting we were informed we were lucky to see so much as the other screen stopped an hour earlier. No apology either. Such a shame it spoilt a magnificent production for us. Will contact the cinema again tomorrow to give them a second chance to make ammends.
Dear Marlene,
Very sorry to hear that there were problems with the relay in Trowbridge. I will pass your comments on to our cinema team,
All the best,
Lottie
Another wonderful live relay, watched in Vue cinema, Carlisle. All performers and behind-the-scenes workers deserve a huge 'thank you!' For me, Steven McRae totally stole the show - his performance in Act III was mesmerising!! His stage presence and movement is dazzling. Yuhui Choe and Valentino Zuccheti also merit particular praise. One little complaint is that, again, the cast list is too restricted - please give credit to many more of the dancers. I know there may be cast changes at the last minute at variance to the printed cast list, but this could be easily mentioned by Darcey in the introduction, so that the audience can note any necessary change. It is always good to watch the up-coming stars of the future progress in their careers.
An absolute delight! and danced serenely by Sarah Lamb & Steven McRae, the Lilac Fairy was just so wonderful to watch, and the evil Carabosse with her rats made for a most enjoyable evening. I have seen many ballet's in the past but never Swan Lake, will you be performing it in the future! I hope so.
We SO enjoyed Sleeping Beauty last night at the Cinema in Seville. The best seats in the house. We were literally transported to London for a few hours! We also enjoyed the behind the scenes interviews and history. Such a great idea! Covent Garden never fails. Such great quality. Wonderful dancers, costumes, sets etc etc and not to forget the orchestra which we could see better than if we were at the Theatre!!
Saw this at Silver City in Polo Park, Winnipeg last night - outstanding and brilliant performance. Kristen McNally as Carabosse was absolutely amazing but I'd be hard pressed to single out any particular dancer -except perhaps Sarah Lamb who was just superb - but they were all just wonderful. I know I'm enjoying a performance when I get so drawn into it that I forget where I am. Absolutely awesome!!
After a long day at work it was great to be able to go down to my local cinema and see a great performance without having to take the day off go to London and then travel home again. A really great idea and a rare artistic use of communication technology. Hope to see more of these broadcasts in the future.
I hope this was recorded and will be released for sale at some point?
Glad that you enjoyed it Pete. There are no plans to release this particular performance on DVD at present.
Best wishes
Ellen
Thank you all so much for enthralling so many people last night. In particular I adored Sarah Lamb for her outstanding beauty, her brilliance as a ballerina, her terrific stage presence plus her charisma and serenity. She just oozed magnificence. The Rose Adagio was truly heart-stopping and a scene I don't think I shall ever forget. This is an opulent and lavish ballet with stunning costumes and great imagery and I feel so privileged to have seen it. Thank you all so very very much.
A fabulous performance by all the dancers, particularly Sarah Lamb and Stephen McRae. Having been to Covent Garden for other productions, what you miss with the atmosphere is well compensated for by seeing the detail of the costumes, expressions and wonderful footwork. My only comment is that with this and other live transmissions at the cinema (Canterbury, Gulbenkian) there were short breaks in sound and vision which disrupted the overall atmosphere.
Absolutely wonderful way to spend an evening at our local Cinema in Yeovil. Sarah Lamb and Steven McCrae - indeed all the cast - were BRILLIANT! Thanks for reminding me how much I love Ballet even if I can't dance anymore.
Thoroughly enjoyed performance and setting of Sleeping Beauty last night. Watched at Taliesin Theatre,Swansea University,not a huge venue, but the broadcast interval times did not permit relaxed enjoyment of drinks despite pre ordering and quick access.
We thought principals, soloists and corps de ballet worked very hard , with high quality technical control and some good musicality.
I was in the audience at the Odeon Cinema in Belfast---and what a great night was enjoyed by us all!World class ballet and beautiful music--THANK YOU to everyone who made this possible.A
Just came from our local screening in Buffalo, NY. My 9-yr-old "ballerina" was enthralled. So great that she can see what all the hours in the studio add up to. I think she has a new hero in Sarah Lamb. Thanks for showing it across the pond.
I didn't even know this was on, Sleeping Beauty was the first Ballet I ever saw, I don't like to say how many years ago now. I wish I had known this was on. Please, Please tell me they will be repeating this.
Hope you could all hear our applause from Minnesota! Just saw this delightful performance with my Mom and nine year old daughter. Tears welled up in my eyes when I heard my daughter quietly humming along with the music. Lost track of how many times I got goose bumps! Thank you off an incredible night of memories!
I was fortunate to have spent two years watching the Royal Ballet in the mid fifties, as having been stationed in London with the US AirForce.Watching the performance of Sleeping Beauty tonight returned me back to Covent Garden. This performance was excellent, what with the marvelous costuming and staging. The dancers were great. However, no one will ever perform a more spectacular Rose Adagio than the Greatest and Exciting Margot Fonteyn!! She was truly "the Prima Ballerina Assoluta." Nevertheless, please do continue presenting more and more ballets to the world audience. They are "the greatest!"
About 24 people came to see it in Lombard , Illinois USA. Superb as always. The float across the stage. Keep up the good work.
It was a truly superb evening and captured nearly all of the atmosphere of actually sitting in the Opera House itself! As ever, the dancers were totally brilliant and all I would say is that, in a ballet with so many solos, it would have been great if the full casting could have been published online before the performance even though we know that things do change. Our cinema (Cineworld Southampton) didn't hand out cast sheets and the intervals pieces were slightly out of sync but still a great night.
First time seeing ballet on the big screen, brilliant idea. Helen Lamb, Steven McRae totally exquisite, bluebirds, too the whole production was magical. Orchestra interpreted the music so beautifully.
Wonderful to be sitting in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (Hawaii) as if it were the central Grand Tier. Wonderful occasion yet again, spoiled by cut off feet in Prologue and Act 1. Giselle suffered the same fate. Don't know whether it is the filming or cinema at fault.
Thoroughly enjoyed the whole production - I thought The Sleeping Beauty wasn't my favourite of ballets but the whole cast did a fine job of convincing me otherwise!
The fairies in the prologue, the prince in Act II and the Pas de Trois in Act III stood out for me as exceptional.
I also loved that we saw a bit of the orchestra - well deserved as they were superb.
The photography was much improved - thank you for listening to the comments made about previous broadcasts.
I liked the panning across stage so we got a close up of the corp without losing too much of the action.
I would still like a view from the circle or higher - I think we missed out on the patterns made, especially with the garland dance and on other occasion. The poor dancers work hard in the back row but I couldn't see them!
MARK THACKERAY, Broadcast Engineer
Thanks for replying to my query about blurring. I watched at Cineworld, Chesterfield. This did happen in fast movement and it may be that it is inevitable.
Really loved everything about the show except one thing, could we please have more panoramic shots, we get far to many close up's and we don't need them , I want to be able to see of the whole stage more often, there is a large cast of dancers, sets and fabulous costumes that I would like to see more of, close up's have their place but not so many PLEASE.
I watched the live relay from France. It was wonderful. II've discovered a new world. I've never been to the Opera. It makes me want to go to now !
Special "bravo" to Kristen McNally. She was gorgeously scary. Yuhui Choe and his partner (sorry I don't remember his name) were beautiful and magical. There costums were marvellous
Loved every minute of the production. I agree with the person who requested fewer close ups and more panoramic shots. Sometimes we missed some of the dancing while seeing a close up.
I loved this ballet. It was the first one I have ever seen. My mother and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The music and dance combination was flawless. Well done!
Wonderful performance and production, although the bluebird pas-de-deux doesn’t match Nadia Nerina’s sharp bird-like interpretation all those years ago that first made me interested in ballet.
BUT, why are we who watch in cinemas told it is only a ten minute interval. We come back in only to watch banal twitter comments with ROH patrons in the background continuing their interval in the champagne bar, then repeats of the ROH background activities we’ve seen before. Our (unsubsidised) cinema didn’t even open its bar to make itself a bit of money as the intervals were too short, barely time to wait in the queue to go to the loo. We would like to make the cinema experience a proper evening out just like the ROH patrons have. Instead we are brought back to watch the rich and posh (and subsidised by us) people enjoying themselves, presumably being expected to be grateful for the privilege of having the opportunity to just look at them and to tug our forelocks to them. After all we’re only from the provinces, we don’t deserve any better. The old ROH elitism still reigns! Surely you can give us a countdown to the real ballet performance restart times. The Met opera do this and also have the interviews at the beginning of the interval, so that those of us who prefer a coffee and a chat between ourselves rather than watch the uninspiring Renee Fleming interviews can do so.
A great evening spoiled by the ineptness and lack of consideration by your cinema team.
Dear Tony
Thanks you for your feedback, which I will pass on to our cinema team.
Best wishes
Ellen
I saw this performance in Sarasota, FL 2 hrs after seeing an HD performance of Massanet's Werther. Both exhilarating and splendid. Sarah is from my home city of Boston so was thrilled to see her as Beautiful Aurora. She had a marvelously sensitive partner in Steven McRae. And kudos, kudos to my Bluebird of Happiness,Valentino Zucchetti Bravi tutti!
love this company--glorious productions an performers!
Went to Nottingham Cineworld with my husband and two friends we all loved the performance and were amazed at the amount of detail we could see on screen. I have always dreamt of visiting ROH but this was as good. We have already booked for A Winters Tale and look forward to future screenings. Thank you so much.
I thought Sleeping Beauty was quite breathtaking, would not have missed the live link for anything.
Is there an chance that you will be doing a live link for Swan lake when the Mariinsky are in London??? Do hope so.
Thank you for all the wonderful ballets and Operas you have let us who live in the "sticks" see and listen to!!!!!
Dear Morag
Glad that you enjoyed the performance. We actually only produce live cinema relays of our own productions, so we won't be broadcasting the Mariinsky Swan Lake.
All the best
Ellen
Programme sheet was totally inadequate, listing only the major characters. I was told that there were cast changes but no details available. I contacted Opera House and was assured someone would email details but I am still waiting.
Dear Julian
We will now be publishing the full casting on the event page for the cinema performance:
http://www.roh.org.uk/events/9jv8w
Apologies that you have had to wait for it.
Best wishes
Ellen
Love the live relays; wish I'd heard about them earlier as I've only been coming for a year - please don't ever stop. I cannot afford ROH tickets but everyone can enjoy the best seat in the house at the cinema. Took my daughter to see Sleeping Beauty in High Wycombe. We both thought it was wonderful.
It was magical, the only downside was the dancers could not hear the worldwide applause. It would have been deafening.
I saw it in Middlesbrough and thought it came across really well. I later saw the matinee this last Saturday at ROH and found that details I spotted in the cinema enhanced my appreciation of it live. There was some blurring- I had assumed it was my eyes! My friend and I thought it was too dark in places, this is true on stage, as well, but it reduced the effectiveness of some sections eg when Carabosse and her retinue burst on stage. The Bolshoi transmissions include text briefly outlining the action of each act which helps the audience, (it was a bit hit and miss how much of the plot was conveyed in the discussion), and the casting for each act could have been screened then. If not, it should go on screen when the particular dancers are taking their bows. We waited a long time at the end for the casting and had given up, thinking it wasn't going to be shown, only to find we had missed most of it! But a great performance by Stephen and Sarah and brilliant Bluebirds by Yuhui and Valentino.
The broadcast was terrific and Cambridge was packed out but please please stop using Darcey Busssel for the commentary and 'interviews'. Either she really is dumb or deliberately dumbing down but it doesn't work! Irritating, inarticulate- it undermines her triumphant career as a dancer, alienates knowledgeable viewers and teaches the uninitiated absolutely nothing but platitudes!
Johnny cope, Deborah bull, anybody but darcey!
My daughter took me to Letchworth cinema for early Mother's Day present. We loved it. So much better than we thought it was going to be. Would have liked to have a more detailed cast sheet next time. Steven McRae and Sarah lamb were perfection. Excellent bluebirds too! Has made me want to get out my pointe shoes!! Will be going to the next screening for sure. Thank you!
Dear Michelle
Glad that you enjoyed the performance! Although we only supply an abridged cast sheet for cinemas, you can find the full cast on our website:
http://www.roh.org.uk/showings/sleeping-beauty-2014
Best wishes
Ellen
We watched this wonderful performance in Tavira, Portugal, and are so looking forward to seeing the next one.
The only problem we had was that during the interval and at the end of the performance, the Cinema didn't put the lighting on in order for us to safely negotiate the many steps, there was lots of giggling but it did make our exit very difficult.
A huge thank you to every one involved.
A really enjoyable performance from all concerned. We watched at a cinema.
My only criticism is of the film director and it applies to many of the live screenings, opera and theatre. There are too many closeups going on for too long. The film director doesn't seem to understand that s/he is filming a stage production. The theatre director has produced a performance for the stage, not film, so the actions of all on stage are important, but with all the closeups you miss a lot of what is going on elsewhere on the stage. So a lot of what make a visit to a live performance such a stimulating occasion is lost. Just because a camera can zoom in and fill the screen with a performer's face doesn't mean you should.
I went to an "Encore" viewing of The Sleeping Beauty yesterday at my local cinema in Wisbech, Cambs. (3 peformances there in total, and all sold out.) Darcey Bussell is perfect in her commentaries between acts, etc. I would imagine that the majority of cinema audiences might never have seen or been to the ballet before, and Darcey is so friendly and charming, and at ease in front of the camera, and informative, too, for the ballet novices. I loved Kristen McNally as Carabosse, how great to see a young and supple dancer in the role. Also Yuhui Choe is an exquisite Bluebird, and I would love to see her in a principal role at the cinemas. I can't wait for The Winter's Tale, and I hope many Royal Ballet broadcasts to come in the future!
Thank you so,I was able to see sleeping beauty at Christchurch regent centre,which was compleaty full not only was it an amazing performance of sleeping beauty but then to be taken back stage with the wonderful Darcey Bussell and hear from the stars of the night and their teachers made the whole evening so very special.also to see peoples tweets from around the world was really intresting i can't wait for the winters tale and already have several other friends who won't to come so once again thank you very much.
Show postponed in my town due to persistent transmission problems. Disappointed to read that the cast is still not identifiable in full, despite various comments and sensible suggestions for a solution in the past.
Sorry to hear that your screening has been postponed. The full casting is now available, and will be added for future performances as well:
http://www.roh.org.uk/showings/sleeping-beauty-2014
Best wishes
Ellen
Not sure why the cinematography was so utterly dire at Cineworld Braintree Essex. Full shots looked like 1950's filming. When the camera went in for a close shot, the ballet dancers legs were cut off. Totally frustrating as the costumes, the magic of this performance was frustrated and lost due to the dreadful filming. We are coming to give ROH a second chance in June with Manon Lescaut but will leave A Winters Tale as the frustration of the dreadful filming has put our group off.
A most enjoyable performance seen at our local cinema in Céret, France. Production, dancing and music of the high standard we expect of the ROH. Perfect sound and picture here and I am delighted to tell you that the audience in the cinema applauds frequently . It does make a difference to the ambience and enjoyment of the performance.
Thank you for a first rate production.
A further comment. I did not notice any cut-off legs in Céret. I wonder if this is a problem with the screen aspect ratio of particular cinemas?
Caught an encore screening yesterday here in Canada. The sets and costumes were a visual feast. The orchestra was in fine voice, and the dancing was sublime from everyone. What a treat!! Loved that Lamb and McRae were in the leads as they are among my favourite dancers and gave their usual blend of awe-inspiring technique and natural acting. I've seen Sleeping Beauty once before, in a lovely production, but this was by far the best. My only quibble, as others have said, was not having a full cast list in the programs provided at the cinema.
Please make this, and the other cinema relays, availabale on DVD, as I would gladly pay to watch them again and again.
I really hope you can bring live cinema relays here in south east asia: singapore, malaysia, philippines...
Even an encore/pre-recorded telecast would be highly appreciated. I remember there was a pre-recorded screening of Giselle with Nunez and Pennefather in Hong Kong; i went there just to see it even if I live in Manila.
Watched this 'glam' performance in Limassol last nite. There was a tweet or two that summed it up. ' Continuously Spectacular' & the ' costumes were so yummy you could almost eat them'.
Thank you so much ROH these screenings make life so worthwhile. The audience clapped & the whole performance was like a fairy tale come true.
As a great fan from Fonteyn/Nureyev days I have seen a lot of classics over the years and after a long ballet gap, your live screenings are an absolute joy. To have the intriguing backstage and close up shots ......who could fail to love every second of these classics? I have now seen Giselle, Beauty and Swan Lake (Bolshoi) through these fantastic live screenings at the Odeon, Taunton and have been transported back to that magical land of my youth! Yuhui Choe gave sparkle and joy to her role....what a wonderful future Aurora? I had a big smile on my face from curtain up to the last curtain call. Enchanting dancing, production, everything. Thank you so much.