Ballet: Manon

After the great review of Manon in Time Out, I had no reservations about seeing it. Time Out also has a great offer of 54% off tickets - book by Wednesday, but there are cheaper than that to be had, and as usual, I booked the cheapest that had an acceptable view. Which put me in Row M of the amphitheatre again - and that's just fine. It's still a level lower than the "Upper Amphitheatre", and is slightly less far to climb. And the view is excellent, unless you mind being so far up. Very handy, the views they provide on the website for every single seat in the place. Mind you, I was slightly perplexed when I discovered they were charging me £3 more than the quoted ticket price - until I realised they'd added that as a "voluntary donation". Huh, cheek. I reduced it and continued.

Of course, I was rushing again - this evening, I was caught up at the office, and then had to race home with groceries that I barely had time to put in the fridge before I was off again! So much for changing into something nice. Ah well. Anyhow, I was lucky with timings; the Piccadilly Line train arrived as I got to the platform - I got on at the end and even got a seat! - and the lift at Covent Garden arrived practically on cue. It was organised a bit better tonight, with staff at underground and ground levels to manage the flow of passengers, and direct us to leave via both doors when we got to the surface.

I was in the rain-bedraggled queue by the time the 10-minute bell sounded, and by the time the 5-minute announcement came, I was en route upstairs. My seat was fine, except for proximity to the person beside me - when the lights dimmed and the seats at the end of my row were still vacant, I scooched over one for space. A lady in the row in front of me had the same idea, and clambered over the back of her seat to sit at the edge of my row. As the performance progressed, I had cause, once more, to lament the mobile phone "culture". WHY, O WHY, do some people - mainly girls, I notice - feel an irresistible urge to check their messages at regular intervals?

• If you're bored, leave.
• If you're expecting an urgent message, put it on vibrate, put it somewhere you'll feel it, and forget about it.
• If you're just obsessed with constantly checking messages - you need help. Fast.

And so to the show. It's ages since I've been to the ballet - and oh, what a treat this was! Time Out had it exactly right. You might want to leave the kids at home - apart from all the rest that's implied, there is a simulated blowjob, for instance. But my, this was a joy to watch! Earthier than your average ballet, nonetheless the costumes were sumptuous, the sets delightful, and both dancing and, indeed, choreography were incredible. The skill that went into each move was tangible. Mind you, the score was so good that I often forgot I was supposed to be concentrating on the dance..

It's quite simply gorgeous to watch. Every so often, the performance was greeted with thunderous applause, sometimes cries of "bravo!". It's a long one - three acts - and I think we were all exhausted by the time the smoke billowed over the stage for the final scene. It's this quality of show, however, that reminds me why I love living here. Plenty of tickets available for the next two nights - some for the 29th. Otherwise, it's sold out. Or you can catch it live in cinemas on Thursday.. Strongly recommended, this is the most enchanting thing I've seen in ages!

Less enchanting was the lashing rain we could see as we left the building. I'd normally take a shortcut through a side door, sidestepping the queue at the cloakroom, but tonight the longer walk outside that would entail wasn't appealing. I had long enough to get drenched, walking back to Leicester Square. Interestingly, as I approached the station, I saw something I saw last week as well - everyone seems to approach the station on the right-hand side of the road! Probably because the sign is larger there - but there's also an entrance on the left, which is much less crowded. You still all meet up inside, of course - and we were glad to get in from the rain. Might have accounted for the good business the busker was doing, all those happy punters - but he was good, playing sax to accompany tracks of pop classics. 

For tomorrow, I just made a last-minute booking for an opera gala, at the Southbank Centre. Cheapest seat left in the place - in a box, to the side. More opera on Wednesday, when I'm off to the Coliseum, to see The Girl of the Golden West, by Puccini - balcony, as before, and a row near the entrance at the back - they don't have the reassuring railings that the opera house does!