'The Firebird'/'A Month in the Country'/'Symphony in C' at the Royal Opera House

The latest triple bill of one act ballets at the Royal Opera House was 'The Firebird', 'A Month in the Country' and 'Symphony in C' - spectacle, narrative and pure ballet. What more could you ask for? I like the triple bills by the Royal Ballet since you always get a mix of styles and tempos, something there to suit everyone.

'The Firebird' was created for the Ballet Russe and, as such, is all about spectacle and that's we get. The Firebird flutters around the stage with grace moving to jerky, bird-like movements in her red and gold costume. The story is rather minimal and unlikely but you're not there for the story.

The prince eventually captures the Firebird but frees her as she gives him a magic feather to summon her when he's in trouble. That's just as well because he soon finds himself embattled by the local wizard and his minions so the prince pulls out the feather and, miraculously, there she is, the Firebird swopping round the stage destroying the minions. The prince is then free to marry a princess who was the wizard's prisoner and we get a grand finale with more and more people appearing on stage in lavish costumes as they attend the royal marriage. It's a spectacular scene with so many people walking on stage at the end.

One of the fun things was to see the background of a magical cityscape used in the final scene and recognising it from seeing an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2011 about Diaghilev and the Ballet Russe.

The wonderful Itziar Mendizabal danced the Firebird, Nehemiah Kish danced the prince, Claire Calvert danced the princess and Christopher Saunders was evil as the wizard.

'A Month in the Country' is based on the play by Turgenev and created as a ballet by Frederick Ashton. It's a regular in the repertoire of the Royal Ballet and is an elegant, narrative ballet, telling the story of the residents of the country house, the loves, the boredom, the everyday lives and the special. It was very well done and nicely staged and, after the spectacle of 'The Firebird', nicely changed the tone of the evening with its genteel dancing and muted colours. The lead character of Natalia was danced by a namesake, Natalia Osipova.

The final ballet was 'Symphony in C', a series of movements of pure ballet, not trying to tell any story, rather, just enjoying the sight and power of movement for its own sake. I loved the energetic dancing and the synchronised sections, especially when the stage was flooded by ballerinas in white tutus, creating an astonishing spectacle. There were a lot more ballerinas than male dancers who created a nice balance in their black tights and tunics.

The excitement mounted for me as more and more dancers joined the stage, groups of dancers coming together and separating, different movements and complex synchronised dancing. It was breathtaking. As the ballet advanced the stage was flooded with ballerinas in white tutus and it was a splendid sight, watching them create patterns on the stage and then breaking away before coming back to gather in synchronised perfection. I loved it! Another successful evening of very different ballets from the Royal Ballet.

'La Fille Mal Gardee' at the Royal Opera House

This evening we went to see Frederick Ashton's 'La Fille Mal Gardee' (or 'The Wayward Daughter') performed by the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House, a first for me and I know nothing about the ballet. But I soon fell in love with its charm, its sheer Englishness and its energetic dancing. Dancing chickens, a maypole, clog dancing and a pony and trap, it's all in there and bursting with the joy of a fruitful autumn harvest. And we were lucky to have Steven McRea and Natalia Osipova as our principals, the lovers.

It's the tale of Lise who loves Colas but her mother wants her to marry Alain. Our happy-go-lucky hero and heroine naturally end up together but its how they get there that's the interesting stuff. Or maybe it's the romantic and energetic dancing?

The tone is set right at the start with dawn starting with the cockerel and chickens doing a mad dance before Lise emerges for her morning chores. And that's when we first meet her daft mother, played by Thomas Whitehead in his best pantomime dame drag and big bum. He's really very good at the comic dancing and being the ultimate foil for the lovers who eventually blesses them. He's also pretty fab at the clog dance with four of the milk maids - how on earth do they go up on tippy in clogs? That was astonishing!

The ballet is full of the English season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, starting in the farmyard of Lise's mother before heading out into the glorious fields for the harvest and the post-harvest celebrations (oddly, with a Spring Maypole) before ending with an Autumn storm. I loved the storm scene, with the cast being blown hither and thither on the stage with lightning shooting down and gusts of blustery rain. It was very effective and who could have imagined what happened to Alain just as the curtain dropped to close the first half (and I'm not going to tell you, but it was a great surprise).

The second half is set in the farmhouse when Lise and Colas meet again and Alain comes to claim his bride. Of course, our lovers win the day (but I won't say how) and are finally blessed by Lise's mother.

There's lots more to the story but you need to see it for yourself. It's not the most complex of ballet's but it's really enjoyable and draws you into it. I realised I was smiling ear-to-ear half-way through the first half at the sheer joy of seeing the performance. It lightens the spirits and makes you happy. That's the point surely?

Needless to say, I loved it. What's not to love? Both principals had their turn at doing the spinning round and round and round and round thing, endlessly spinning, arms and legs flying out and perfectly controlled to make us all gasp and applaud. Wonderful solos and duets and the ensemble pieces were marvellous too, all synchronised and perfect. And, of course, we had the fun of Peregrine the Pony (my new favourite ballet dancer) doing his dance steps as well.

I loved this show. Great dancing, marvellous story-telling, excellent sets, costumes and lighting - what more could one want? I enthusiastically joined in the clapping at the end and it was lovely to see this photo of Steven and Natalia taking their bows at the end of the show (tweeted by Steven McRea).  Enjoy the rest of the run people, you bring us joy!