Ballet: Mayerling

And now, the end is near.. and so I face the final curtain..

Well, near but not yet quite arrived, and hopefully not the end, but just a pause. Because, of course, the Man with the Hat is taking a break, and we don't know (and neither does he, I think) when he'll be back. Moral of the story - enjoy these Meetups while they last, there's nothing else quite like them out there.

Anyway, for last night, Let's Do London - for less! was off to the Opera House, to see.. Mayerling. Ooh-er: a ballet of unparalleled passion and intensity, and my favourite, by the way. (Well, I'm a sucker for passion and intensity.) I booked just as fast as my fingers were able to. And, of course, it was nice to be able to stroll down there, just a 10-minute walk from the office. He was easy to spot, surrounded by the usual scrum as he sorted out slips tickets from amphitheatre ones, and when I had my ticket I headed upstairs, arriving just as the house opened. I didn't bother to stay for a drink - there was nowhere to sit, and I couldn't see anyone I knew.

I sat beside a charming young man, who eyed my free flier jealously. He obviously hadn't been here before, and didn't realise that these are available at the programme stands - and, as I explained to him, they're very handy for the plot summary and the timings, which include length of intervals. There's also a cast list, if you're into that sort of thing. So I lent him mine, and we got to chatting, comparing operas and ballets. His favourite ballet is Swan Lake. Uh-oh, I thought..

See, Swan Lake this isn't. What it is, is a depiction of the real-life Mayerling incident - the Crown Prince of the Austro-Hungarian empire, locked into a loveless marriage, fell madly in love with a young girl, took her to his hunting lodge at Mayerling for the weekend, and (spoiler) neither came out alive. Apparently a murder-suicide, at any rate, it was a terrible scandal, and as he was the only liberal member of the family, his early death had enormous repercussions, with the Habsburgs losing the throne less than 30 years later. Had he lived, perhaps he could have changed their fortunes - who can say?

Now, it isn't for everyone. The guy beside me - and his companion - did stay for the duration, but I overheard him remark at the interval that it was "too dramatic" for him. Indeed, someone else later said that someone near her had called it "disgusting". By the third act, the seats around me were emptying out a bit, which gave me a nice amount of space to move around in.

I adored it, just like last time (when I bought the dvd). Again, Swan Lake it isn't - although the costumes are sumptuous, they aren't the frilly tutus of many ballets. The story is a tragedy, to which we're building up all night, and the sets and score are made to match. The sets are dark and brooding, the score - of which I'm also very fond - is brooding and intense. The dancing is actually violent in parts, with him flinging her about the stage, both crawling along the stage, her crawling all over him. Visceral, I think you could say, rather than pretty. There's a moment of nudity, too. Oh, and at least one gunshot in every act.

Highly recommended, but be warned - apart from the above, it's long. Not that I minded, but the early start and late finish did put some people off, and we had some who left - some were tired, some were sick, some had to be up early. And maybe they weren't that keen on it. Still, we had a decent crowd for the pub afterwards - at The Covent Garden, the Man with the Hat directed us to the end of the bar, where a bottle of white wine was waiting in a cooler, complete with several glasses. He said he'd bring a bottle of red when he came himself, staying behind to direct stragglers. We repaired upstairs, and although he left early, I'm sure he'd be delighted to know that we spent much of the evening singing his praises.

Of course, when the white was finished, I ended up having some red as well, and it was past my bedtime when I got home. I suspect something similar will happen tonight - I'd already bought a ticket to Nell Gwynn, at the Globe, then it turned out that London Dramatic Arts (LDAM) is going on the same night! (Buy Your Own Ticket.) As the organiser said, it must be fate.. it'll certainly be nice to have company. Odd venue for them, though - I know the organiser doesn't like it. Naturally, we're meeting at The Swan both before and after.

And tomorrow, I'm joining the London European Club for a classical concert at the Royal Festival Hall. Oh joy, they're playing Beethoven's 9th. LDAM has a double-bill that day, in the Arcola, but it wouldn't be convenient, and I'm not that pushed anyway.