'Les Patineurs'/'Winter Dreams'/'The Concert' at the Royal Opera House

A lovely pre-Christmas treat was to see a triple bill by the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House: a delightful and fun 'Les Patineurs', the serious 'Winter Dreams', and the cheeky and funny 'The Concert'. I wonder who gets to decide on which ballets to include in triple bills? I like them because you get to see different ballets and styles of dancing and you might see something you'd never knowingly buy a ticket to see. This particular triple bill was definitely worth seeing.

'Les Patineurs' is about ice-skaters and is set on an iced over pond in the woods with skaters appearing and disappearing among the trees. There's no particular story to it, just loads of dancing and occasionally falling on their bums (which happens when skating). There was some lovely dancing, sometimes in groups and other times duets or solos, with lots to enjoy. There was a lot of energy and fun to see, with the dancers feigning slipping and falling as you would on ice. I loved the consistency of the dancers and their skating movements which they kept going throughout, even when they came forward for bows after particularly fancy movements.

The second ballet was longer and far more serious since 'Winter Dreams' is based on Chekov's 'Three Sisters'. It looked far more technical and precise than the first ballet, slower and more intricate as the dancers held poses and slow transitions. For me, this was more about appreciating the performance rather than loving it and getting carried away with it. Lucky for me it featured two of my favourite dancers in the effortlessly graceful Itziar Mendizabal and Sarah Lamb, both of whom are always worth seeing.

The third ballet was 'The Concert' which was out and out fun! A comedy ballet (if there is such a thing) with the dancers demonstrating the comic side of the art form. The dancers are the audience at a piano recital and come on stage in ones and twos carrying their fold-out chairs to place themselves around the stage. Then one starts dancing and encourages the others out of their chairs and we're off and running with the pianist still playing (as well as the orchestra in the pit).

I particularly liked the section where the ballerinas were carried on by the male dancers as if they were shop dummies in various poses and end up lumped together in a pile in the centre of the stage from which they spring to life in perfect formation. Or do they? At least one of the dancers was always out of synch with the others - if they moved left then she moved right, until she noticed her error and moved back. Such a simple device but it was incredibly funny and had even me chuckling out loud. It struck me that this is what must happen on occasion in early rehearsals and it had that smack of authenticity to it, but is here played for laughs. Well done lasses!

It was a great triple bill that worked very well: the delightful whimsy of the ice-skaters, the change of pace and tone for the serious 'Winter Dreams' and then the sheer fun or 'The Concert'. Well done Royal Ballet, a lovely pre-Christmas treat!