Ingrid ......fresh air in Chichester....and it doesn't come much fresher by the sea...

Looking through heaps of memorabilia, filtering out much of no consequence, and being very brave, nay, ruthless in discarding a load of dross which has been packed away and forgotten over the years since I retired. O.K. so I'm still rushing about like a dotty, breathing with anyone who's interested - but you know what I mean.....? During my time as Property Manager (stage props., not buildings) for Chichester Festival Theatre Company, mid nineteen seventies, one of the most charming and human of the International artistes I was privileged to have as a colleague, was the legendary Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman. So elegant, she was leading lady in a production of "The Waters of the Moon", what I would describe as a fairly forgettable play, and the reason for having a star studded British cast to support Miss Bergman - Dame Wendy Hiller, Sir John Clements, Dandy Nichols. At the first production meeting with producer, designer, entire cast and production team, all very English, terribly polite and proper of course, the costume designs (by a young and inexperienced lady who had "researched" the period), were laid out on a table, and I will never forget Miss Bergmans' expression when she saw those intended for her - she was aghast, but trying not to show it....Her character in the play was a 1930's film star - and she pointed out, as kindly as possible, that she was a film star at that time - and would never have worn anything so unfashionable - and one could sense her thinking "and uugly"....There was an embarassing silence, everyone seemed to stop breathing until the Artistic Director tactfully changed the subject to the set and prop. designs. Pheeew - great sighs of relief all round... The costumes were eventually designed by Finlay James - and they were gooorgeous - could hardly get Miss B. out of them !! As rehearsals progressed I was obliged to present properties to the respective actors, a process by which one builds up friendships within the company. Miss Bergman had never worked on a thrust stage before and found it quite daunting; to relieve the pressure of intense rehearsals, she invited me to join her - she'd hired a Mini (tiny car which she could just squeeze in to..) to enjoy "a breath of fresh air" at lunch times, and suggested that we explore various picturesque little villages on the shores of Chichester Harbour, it being my home territory. We had such fun, and as colleagues, it didn't really dawn on me at the time just how special those happy hours were. The show was so succeccful that it transferred to The Haymarket Theatre in London. Many people asked if they could be introduced to Ingrid - we were well past formal titles by that time, and she always said it was O.K. if they were friends of mine - she had had awful experiences with over enthusiastic "stalker" fans . Kiri was overawed by meeting her - and a year later Ingrid was overjoyed that she had met Kiri when she sang The Countess, in "Figaro" at The Royal Opera, London - wonderful when gifted artists meet, so modest with each other.... Incidently, Ingrid would only work in the U.K if her favourite dresser, a motherly old cockney lady called Looey was available to protect her from over zealous fans - such terrors..... "glamour" as Anna L says......k..p b.......g...

Lucky clover ....

You may have heard that finding a four leafed clover is the harbinger of good luck ? How about a five leafed clover - just what I picked recently in Munich, on a bank of the River Isar - so I've been waiting for a miracle ......! It's already happened in a minor way - miracles do come in varying degrees, and mine have been with finances. No, not a lottery win - I don't indulge, but in tiny benefits - "every little helps" is the Tesco motto, and my miracles couldn't be much "littler".....Think I have already mentioned the free television licence ? Much to my surprise, having acknowledged that I've attained the ripe old (?) age of seventy five, the powers that be have refunded me the princely sum of eighty pounds, in two cheques - I had contacted two different personnel at the Pensions Dept., ( ooops - don't spend it aaaall at once... ), illegally taken from my bank account as no one had noticed my birth date. Maybe if I keep calling them, the funds will carry on arriving - hope springs eternal..... My state pension was not allocated to me until one year after I qualified at sixty years - I had to tell them I was still alive - and hoooow..! Beaurocracy - uuuugh... Now I have a free bus pass nationally - whatever neeeext.....Oh yes. Having sorted out my teeth successfully, I thought it time to have a sight test, and had allocated two to three hundred pounds for new spectacles, the going rate. Much to my astonishment the optician declared that my eyes are in very good conditon - so I don't need new specs ! Pheeew - so the clover leaf IS wooorking.....an honest optician......
The other discovery in Munich was - the fooood - Boy - do they enjoy the local specialities , and such laaarge portions , not surprisingly, it's all sooo delicious! Anna L mentioned, whilst in Vienna recently, enjoying white asparagus with Hollandaise sauce - now I know the experience -ooooooooh - scrumptious, I indulged several times ...... what with that, the vast potato dumplings, sauerkraut, sweet beers and all the other specialities of Bavaria I'm lucky to be able to fit in to any of my clothes ...... That was another unexpected aspect of Bavarian culture - the regional costumes are worn by so many. Lederhosen, suede waistcoated, half socked, large booted, Tyrolean hatted men whizzing about on bikes with fascinating, individually styled beards and moustachios, elderly matrons on three wheelers, and voluptuous ladies (I didn't see any skinny ones) serving in the beer houses , dirndl clad, masses of blonde hair piled high with frizzy topknots - it felt as though I was in the middle of a "White Horse Inn" musical environment - but it's reeeeal - and I loooved it. Today is a Bank Holiday here, and true to type - it's really cold, dreary, pouring with rain and blowing a gale outside - so I'm taking in another showing of ....."The Sound of Music" ....!! Such pathos and innocence. Aah well, all's right with the world on such a day - if only....... k..p b.......g

"Oliver" casting competition...

I chanced in to the penultimate t.v. programme showing Lord Andrew Lloyd - Webber, Cameron MacIntosh - Barry Humphries - ('Dame Edna Everidge '- a shrewd judge of talent behind the Aussie dizzy dame act! ) and a host of distinguished Thespians, selecting the cast of "Oliver". There was mass hysteria whipped up amongst the live audience, and with viewers able to vote - thereby ensuring capacity audiences when the show takes to the stage in a few months time - clever marketing....... The girls auditioning for Nancy, the final four selected, were all very good; in this competition the participants are virtually unknown in London professional music theatre circles, that's the point of the operation. The boys aspiring to the role of Oliver were just breathtaking - really. They had been whittled down to the final seven and quite "spookily", I chose the final three selected. 'spose that's not really surprising as I'm credited with being able to "suss" talent and potential..... What I found most interesting was the widely varying comments of the judges - it would be good for all auditionees to look up the series and discover some of the vaguaries of opinion. It might give them some idea as to why they are not successful in their own endeavours ...... maybe ? At one audition I remember the best performer being turned down because she wouldn't fit the costumes of her predecessor ..... tut, tut..! That's what can happen when the costumes are astronomically expensive.....a sad reality....Had a nice chat with my Dear Kiwi friend Kiri (te K) yesterday, to request permission to write about her in my long awaited booook - she's very happy to agree, but you'll have to wait a bit longer for the finished product..... (We met as students at The London Opera Centre in 1967, and I lived at her place when I retired in the 1990's - but left to pursue my international breathing "crusade" (!!), just in case you wonder what the connection is...) and we are, like Anna (Larsson), passionate about passing on our knowledge of the profession, especially phonation and air support, to young singers, and integrating them in to the European scene. Kiri has set up a Foundation, rather Like Birgit Nilssons', and funds students from New Zealand and the Pacific region - she always puts on a fantaaaastic meal at her lovely house on our "breathing" days - she's a great cook ! Next Friday I'm going down to Glyndebourne to research my contribution for their productions since 1968 - so it could need more than one trip. Trouble with me is that I quite forget much of my artistic output and am pleasantly surprised when some of it turns up -"Did I really make that ?" often pops in to my ancient brain....."Yeeees - I did ..!!" Well, there's a thing......k..p b.......g

A Baroque weekend in Munchen......with opera ..!

Back in England I'm beginning to regain my equilibrium, and breathing easily again... Why "easily"? Because for the past few days I have been "rubber-necking", and gasping in amazement at the proliferation of Baroque statuary, and mind blowing decor of the archictectural creations in and around the city - ooooh.... Why should it have made such an impact on me ? Simple ! I have spent years faking just about every kind of figure - human and animal, cartouche's, paintings, furniture, and miiiiles of acanthus "swags", not to mention monsters, etc., etc., in this extremely ornate style. To experience the originals, completely O.T.T., smothered in gold and silver leaf - such satisfying metals to work with .(That was in my days as a Fine Arts Restorer, hence my employment to re-create the same, for theatre designers, mainly at Glyndebourne, Chichester Festival Theatre - and training undergraduates in these arts at the University of Birmingham - what a thorough and useful education !!) Apart from all that excitement, I was spoiled rotten by attending the Bayerische Opera - four performances in four days, courtesy of Richard (Whilds) - my greatest artistic passions were thoroughly sated by all this generosity - yes, I WAS born lucky, if rather battered at that time. Life does have its compensations somewhere along the way....more about the Bavarian experience another day - so many lovely memories - haven't mentioned the food yet......aawwh.....or the kind and friendly residents of Munich - just like being in the south western English counties ...the happy hunting ground of my youth..... k..p b.......g...

I'm in Munich !!! The beer here ...mmmmmmmmmmm

Yes, here in Bavaria where even I drink the sweet beer and it doesn't make me tipsy - well, I guess half a glass is not going to make many people very excited ! Staying with my Goddaughter, Celeste - the mellifluous voiced lyric soprano, and her gifted partner Richard - composer, arranger and pianist with inspired fingers - (as well as brain!)- I'm having a great time - guess what ? Going to the Opera... one a day ...for me ...bliss... It's fascinating "catching up" on what's going on down here in the land of Black Forest cherry cake.....ooohh..mmmm Richard is a senior, and highly respected member of the music staff at Bayerische Oper - oh, what a beautiful house, and excellent performance standard. Until recently the Intendant was an ex-pupil of mine at the Royal College of Music in London, in the 1960´s, and has just retired. In my various career occupations I have, inadvertantly, steered many young people at different educational establishments, in to the magical, and crazy, world of opera. Such has been my life long passion after being taken to a performance of Bizets´ "Carmen" at the age of fifteen - once hooked, never retrievable ....'spose one could say I've been obsessed ever since...now it's the breathing that has joined in....? Which brings me back to my main fixation - "breathing anyone ?". Attending performances of vocal works is always of interest to me, and if a piece is really well sung, with air supported phonation, I usually leave "up on a cloud" - (very appropriate for a breathing pedagogue), but usually there is at least one person with their head down, closing the windpipe, or singing out of frequency, "in the nose" - my throat always comes out in sympathy... happy to say that here I can swallow comfortably and enjoy some very fine performances - many thanks Richard and Celeste...What have I been treated to? "The Bassirids" - Hans Werner Henze, who was present at the general rehearsal - haven't seen him since "Elegy for Young Lovers" at Glyndebourne yonks agooo..., "Werther" - excellent cast, and last night a bizarre production of "Fliegende Hollander ", mercifully, well sung.... Apart from indulging in my favourite pastime, we`ve also found time for some "rubber necking" - and I'm not joking. We took the tram(I just love tram rides - they're my era..!!) to the Nymphenberg palace - aaaah ...ooooh.-- how does one describe such wonderful works of art and inspired imaginative creativity ? My head almost fell off I was gawping at the ceilings in amazement at the baroque embellishment - the real thing, which I have spent many a happy hour "faking" for theatre designers... so, 'bye for now ...back to the U.K. tomorrow...k..p b.......g........

Singing - sad - no advance in 90 years it seems....?

Going through some old papers for a clear out, I found an article I copied, by hand - ( about fifty years ago, before photo copiers were in general use, wooow ...)from a book entitled "Practical Singing", by Clifford Cooke, published in 1918. The opening phrase reads " Singing is an art which can only be acquired with the aid of an experienced teacher who can SING, as well as teach - a combination of accomplishments by no means common. 1. Long and arduous study in voice training and elocution is necessary to become a singer - a fact which, obvious enough, and readily accepted in most other walks of life, is notoriously disregarded by would - be singers. 2. CORRECT RESPIRATION is of VITAL importance - an importance which too many people, students and teachers alike, fail to recognise or accept". ( Many guffaw with laughter when I explain that I am a "Breathing Tutor"...."Andnings Pedagogue" in Scandinavia...tut..tut...Luckily those who have the wit to perservere with it and develop breath control, have the advantage over those who don't ! The listener can hear AND see the difference - no "squirming" to try and connect voice with air....) How many times have you had a sore, uncomfortable throat after a performance when "unconnected" singers have struggled to get through the piece...? Ooouuuch...., it brings a lump to my throat just thinking about it.... The article goes on :- 3. "The third, and not least important principle, is that due attention should be given to pronunciation, articulation and enunciation, in which singers, generally, have always been singularly deficient. J.W. Davidson, of The Times, stated boldly, years ago (and this was written in 1918, remember..?) that when people attempted to sing they found out that they had not yet learnt how to speak! Conditions, in this respect, have not altered very much." The remark I make most often to my breathers, using my kindest voice, is "Please 'talk' to me with natural mouth movement, and stop shouting at me - it's not that pleasant to watch or listen to",... Over articulation is encouraged lustily by many choir leaders - this usually prompts me to close my eyes - one International singer who "gets away with murder" in her gigantic facial movements is Jessie Norman - and I'm sure she wouldn't disagree with this, it's obvious for all to see - and it doesn't stop her being a brilliant performer. Oh Jessie, dear Jessie - if one of my breathers opens their mouth to such an exaggerated degree, I grin and tease them by threatening to park my car in it ...naughty me...?! This remark always leads to peals of laughter - yes, we do have FUN, and there is no animosity - I only do this when I know a person well enough for them to understand that I'm not mocking them.... the laughter releases many unnecessary tensions - otherwise it would be too cruel and disheartening. Singers have enough hills to climb without being ridiculed when they're endeavouring to progress and develop their phonation technique. Some will say, during a session "I feel so stupid!" when an exercise eludes them. "That's natural - but remember, far better to work on it here and perfect it, than to go on stage and feel stupid !". I'll relate more of Clifton Cookes' notes on singing another day, it goes on for pages. Does anyone have any comments on HIS comments....? Here are a few more "howlers" ...Solomon had 300 wives and 700 cucumbers.../ To germinate is to become a naturalised German.../ The end of the world will make a turning point in everyone's life.... This next one's a tad naughty, so close your eyes and let someone less sensitive read it for you...The Jews were a proud people, but always had trouble with unsympathetic Genitals (Gentiles)...! (Could that be an oblique subliminal reference to circimcision - whooooops ..?!) With that I'll leave you as graciously as possible, chuckling the while, and with apologies to my Hebrew colleagues...k..p b.......g...happy days....

Musical "howlers".....

Encouraged by an enthusiastic reader, here are some schoolboy howlers in the field of music. / When not working in the church, Bach composed pieces on a spinster (spinnet) in his home. / Refrain means don't do it. A refrain in music is the part you better not try to sing. / Handel was half German, half Italian and half English. He was very large. / Anyone who can read all the instrument notes at the same time gets to be the conductor. / Stradivarious was an imaginary prehistoric animal...This one is for my Scandinavian readers = The principal exports of Sweden are hired girls - meaning of the au pair variety - oooops, my apologies to all you lovely Swedes.... I remember a colleague at Glyndebourne, whose little son had been cast in the Nativity play at his primary school. He proudly announced to his parents that he would be playing the part of "a Roman shoulder in the school activity play" - how sweet. My Mother told of the time my brother, when aged about six, came home from Sunday school and said the text for the day was "Sweet peas and suet "! That somehow didn't ring true, biblically, so and when Mother saw the Sunday school teacher some days later, questioned her about it. She was amused when the teacher explained that the text was "Speak peace, and pursue it"......maybe we should all take note of that one, and forget the sweet peas...? Yesterday I was breathing with a lady who was "put off" singing as a career in her twenties, by the lacklustre and un-inspired teaching she received at one of our most prestigious music colleges. Now, in her mature years, we are starting a programme to rekindle her love of singing - I'll keep you posted as to our progress. I find it sad that I meet so many people who were told at junior school to stand at the back and keep quiet. Teachers have no idea of the harm they do to the psyche of such children. The most encouraging part of my "mission" (as one of my breathers calls it)is that we can usually rectify the situation - one man was sixty five when he tried breathing support and we discovered he has a really beautiful voice - so it's never to late to begin.....k..p b.......g...

"Schoolboy howlers".....take a breath....

Reading Anna's (Larsson) various blogs, with reference to her gorgeous boys, Axel and August - (my two favourites also), I thought of them today when reading a newspaper article with the above title. In case you don't know, "schoolboy howlers" are the remarks children make (and schoolgirls are just as likely to make them as boys..!) when they use the incorrect word or meaning, and often when answering questions in a test, or exam. - an experience yet to come for Axel and August...The following are all factual, and have been compiled by school teachers over the years. To give you some examples - animals:- The largest mammals are to be found in the sea because there is nowhere else to put them./ The adder (snake) is a poisonous snack./ One horsepower is the amount of energy it takes to drag a horse 500 feet in one second./ To stop milk turning sour, keep it in the cow ! Change of subject :- books and words - Homer wrote The Oddity (Odyssey). Actually, it was not written by Homer but by another man of that name..... / Polonius was a mythical sausage.../Letters written in sloping type are in hysterics (italics )- and so am I reading this list, talk about making one breathless ! How about this one - the wife of a Duke is a Dukky. This must be a confusion with the lands pertaining to a Duke which are called a Duchy. /In the middle of the eighteenth century, all the morons (Mormon's) moved to Utah, U.S.A.. / President Carter faced the Iranian Hostess (hostage) crisis./ Louis XV1 was gelatined to death....I must stop this idiocy, but I think you might like this one - The nineteenth century was when people stopped reproducing by hand and started reproducing by machine! So now you know - well, you've all heard of in- vitro fertilisation, so it's not that far off the truth ..!! Enough, enough, my sides ache and my breath is coming out in short pants - make of that what you wiiiiill - !! 'bye for now - k..p b.......g.... p.s. Vacuums are nothings. We only mention them to let them know we know they are there !...more another day....

Skype ...whoopeeeeee!

Having been encouraged to register on this system for some time, I am at last "connected" - and what a revelation - one can "rabbit on" for hooooouuurs - for freeee! (Providing your friends are also on the system.) The only thing I find odd is that there are swooshy, gurgly sounds the p.c. emits to alert one to a call - strange swallowing and slurping noises which conjure up what one imagines are antidiluvain clamour, or legendary Continental plumbing systems --uuurrrggh....... The most useful application is that one can talk and write a message simutaneously - very ingenious......the only thing missing on my machine is a camera - that is my next venture - and I've been waiting for this - to add a camera. No, this is not one of the latest models with a built in lens, but as soon as I organise it, I want to try the breathing exercises, and check up with my breathers that all is in order wherever they are in the world.....what endless possibilities. The only problem that might arise would be the international clock - not always sure which way the earth is turning when I'm half asleep, I'm sure you know what I mean......? Today I took a few deep breaths during a violent thunder storm. At one point I thought the roof was about to be blasted off and Shady beat a hasty retreat under my bed - wise cat ! He's doing very well for his age - still leaping up and down trees, chasing strange cats out of the garden and lounging on the swing seat, purring lustily the while - what a life...., no care or strife....hope you're all in the same state...My latest senior citizen bonuses are having a nationwide free bus pass, and no television fee to pay - just think what you all have to look forward tooooooo - ...! Yes, I'm off again - giggling ....and feeling very sprightly .... must be all the breathing I get through with my lovely singers - how privileged and blessed I am to have such a wonderful way of occupying my days .... big hugs to you all, I'm so proud of you.......k..p b.......g

What's in a name....and words.....

On a trip to London yesterday I travelled by train, via Euston Main Line station, at 17.00 - rush hour .....oooph... Over the years I've always been successful in buying a copy of the British periodical magazine "Opera" at Smith's Stationers and Bookshop, inside the station. So I scoured the shelves for a copy and couldn't find one; as it's quite a small magazine (A5) I thought it might be hidden by another .. Enquiring of the sales assistant if they had a copy anywhere in the store, she directed me to their other branch, just across concourse, within the station. Battling my way through the somewhat frustrated crowd of intending passengers - the atmosphere was tense because of problems with signalling equipment somewhere north of London - total disruption of services, little information, and frayed tempers, I eventually reached Smiths' other shop. All was calm inside as most of their usual customers were more intent on travelling than reading ! "Good evening. Do you have a copy of the 'Opera' magazine, please ? " I asked a very nice young man assistant. He confirmed that he did, but had to go and fetch some from the store, with which he made his way to a door, with pin code security lock, and disappeared down circular stairs into the cellar ... This made me wonder what might be in the magazine to have such secure storage.....? After several minutes the young man emerged triumphantly with an armful of large glossy magazines. As I hadn't seen a copy for several months I assumed (!) that " Opera" had been "vamped up" - often done to justify a price hike. With a gorgeous, beaming, triumphant smile he politely handed me a copy - "There you are Madam" . Thanking him smilingly, without looking at the mag., I was taken aback when I clapped my eyes on the cover.....staring me in the face was a very impressive photograph ooooof - Oprah Winfrey ....well, reeeeally.....When he saw my wide grin become even wider, and realised I was about to have a fit of the giggles, he looked bemused - until I regained enough dignity to explain the misunderstanding. He then joined in the frivolity - it certainly cheered up the atmosphere in that area of the station. At one point, literally elbowing my way through the dense crowd to exit, my mind fleetingly flashed up a window, computer style, "Ask if anyone wants to breathe", (to lessen the tension) - it was the shortest thought I've ever had and passed like lightning as I scanned the harassed, mainly city workers, suffering the daily grind of commuting. They may earn megabucks, but oh, what an unhealthy life - most looking like zombies - they sometimes start at 04.00 to be on line with the worlds' financial markets, and on the train home, much later (many services had been cancelled during the evening, and a 35 minute journey took 1 hour 45 minutes in a 'sardine tin crush' on the train......) my neighbour was on the laptop and mobile for the whole journey. In that time I discovered from 'phone calls to her daughter and friends, that she had flown in the day before from Washington, U.S. of A, and hadn't been able to connect anywhere with her husband, anywhere in the world for the past 5 months ..! They visit their house in Berkhamsted individually to organise builders who are restoring their house .....I took in a deep breath and thanked providence that I am out of the "rat race", oooh, phew.....Trouble is one can't help overhearing such conversations, and the speakers seem oblivious of the fact that they are in a public arena - how often do we all do it ...? Enough for today - except that a weather forecaster has just informed listeners that "today we will have "shars" - we will have what ?? Oh - "showers" - my, my - zee inglisch az she iz schpoke ....gor blimey 'n all that........k..p b.......g......

"Britain's Got Talent" - oouch, the grammar !

'tis irksome to see that title brazenly displayed on the t.v. screen. When I was at school, no, not quite in the time of Queen Victoria, it was considered very infra dig (below one's dignity !) to use the word "got ". It was explained by the teacher that English is such a rich language, there are plenty of alternatives. That was in "the good old days" when education was seemingly more thorough with the spoken word, and we enjoyed them. It's all a bit sloppy these days due to scripts that proliferate in theatre and on t.v., plus media "jargon" (pretentious or nonsensical language - I use it all the time..) As you see in these blogs, about the last thing you will read is "proper", grammatically correct text - tush, tush....2 out of 10 ! The reason I sometimes explain word meanings is in deference to my readers from abroad who won't have a clue what they mean, like me trying to read colloquial Swedish ......oooops ! It's claimed that many a war has been prompted by misleading interpreters and translations....
Apart from its irritating title, the show is basically hysterical, and proves that talent is here - but VERY rare ..... I guess that's the same the world over...? Some of the "acts" leave much to be desired, and as one of the judges is Simon Cowell, kown as "Mr. Nasty", you can imagine it's something of a verbal battleground on occasion. The other judges are Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan, and their opinions vary considerably. Amanda is a stabilising influence and tells Simon when he's being unfair, racist, sexist - you name it - it's all good for the ratings....! The latest episode was dedicated to - pensioners, and by Jove - some of them ARE talented - ! Wish I'd known about it, I could have done a tap dance singing "Norma" - Bellini heroine for those who don't indulge in opera...... Seriously though, there was a Chelsea Pensioner of 86 years - a very funny "stand up comedian", followed by an extremely shapely and supple 85 year old lady belly dancer ...! I'm not kidding, she was gorgeous - maybe THAT could be my "forte" , I'm young enough.......You can probably hear me chortling (happily chuckling) as I write this... use your imagination....
There was also a less convincing and very much younger woman called Edelweiss, who barked and howled like a dog to a tune from "The Phantom of the Opera" - yes, your mind should be boggling...- it was HORRIBLE.... The one thing all these participants had was a healthy supply of air, which just proves how important it is to keep your respiratory system in order....! A daily walk energises me as I saunter across fields and through woods, carpetted by acres of bluebells, so fragrant, and delicate forget - me - nots ...bliss... and as near fresh air as is possible to find within the orbit of four international airports........hmmmmm..... k..p b.......g......

Ballet discipline......phew !

Watching Darcey Bussell, the incredibly lithe and nimble ballerina, presenting a programme about her favourite ballets, illustrated by wonderful films of classic and current dancers, including Dame Margot Fonteyn, I was impressed by their dedication and sheer hard physical work. It must be more demanding on the body than any other theatre art. It reminded me of the recent production of Orphee, by Mats Ek, at The Royal Opera in Stockholm, when Anna Larsson, in the title role, was transformed from a fairly placid and non-physical statuesque diva, into a very agile hero, completely convincing in all the dance routines - and those fascinating feet ! We are unused to seeing them, always being hidden by long skirts, so it was a revelation to realise how well Anna is "grounded", giving rise to her ever greater portrayals of fascinating characters which have previously been stereotyped. What a refreshing artist - I pondered on the thought recently that she might try the latest t.v. show "Dancing on Ice "......Seriously though, and back to the ballet, one of the clips was of Carlos Acosta - what an amazingly spectacular dancer, he never seems to touch the ground in some routines. Partnering Darcey in a mesmerising duet from Romeo and Juliet, I found myself thinking this IS poetry in motion, and oh, the perfect realisation of youthful passion with all its innocence and complexity at one and the same time....As you might expect, I was fascinated by observing their breathing, seeing the ribcages moving economically - just the same way as accomplished singers - not too little and not too much. The main difference is that dancers keep their abdominal muscles fairly still, whereas a singer needs to allow flexibility for more air control, and reducing air pressure under the vocal folds - sounds complicated but is actually very simple.....when you know how !
So, Dear Readers - have a look at Carlos Acosta and Darcey Bussell to be inspired - they will "take your breath away"....... but please k..p b.......g at all other times...!