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Telegraph
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Who needs the Russians when the Japanese can dance like this?
Three years ago, not long after Russia (re-)invaded Ukraine, I wrote: 'The effective home arrest of Russia's (often touring) Big Two' dance companies – ie the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky – 'has now left a fascinating power vacuum on the international stage, not least in Covent Garden's summer schedules. Who will fill it?' The root cause is miserably ongoing, of course, and yet we do have three very definite answers to date. In 2023, the Australian Ballet visited the Royal Opera House for the first time in 35 years; last August, a few streets away at the Coliseum, the State Ballet of Georgia made its charming UK debut. Now, at Covent Garden, the National Ballet of Japan is here for the very first time. And you know what? They may well be the pick of the visitors so far. The company's Giselle is a complete and particularly beautiful success. On one hand, this perhaps shouldn't come as a complete surprise: western classical ballet has existed in Japan for at least a century, and a great many Japanese-born dancers go on to have illustrious careers in the West. But fair's fair: given that this troupe was founded as recently as 1997, the polish, professionalism and assurance of the production and performance alike are astonishing. So, what is this Giselle actually like? In the extensive programme notes, Miyako Yoshida – a Royal Ballet star from 1995-2010, NBJ's director since 2020, and the show's producer – says: 'I felt drawn to a more traditional approach, but infused it with a sense of Japanese spirit'. Frustratingly, she doesn't elaborate on what the last part means. (An enhanced sense of the proximity between the 'real' and spirit worlds, conceivably?) But traditional, it certainly is. Back in the day, Yoshida danced in Peter Wright's pitch-perfect staging for the Royal Ballet, and that version's heightened aesthetics and complete respect for the 1841 source material clearly got under her skin. Opulently and painstakingly designed by Dick Bird, and with unobtrusive embellishments to the Petipa/Coralli/Perrot choreography by Alastair Marriott – Britons both – this is in fact as 'western' a Giselle as you may ever see, a heartbreaking, almost immersively atmospheric Rhineland ghost story – from Tokyo. Full marks, too for the dancing, across the ranks. Giselle – the dance-obsessed peasant girl in love with Albrecht, an already-betrothed count masquerading as a fellow commoner – is one of the great ballerina roles, and on the opening night Yui Yonezawa made it fly. Intensely musical, and almost impossibly light on her feet, she lends Giselle just the right dash of intensity and fragility, the sense of there being a vulnerable thread just waiting to be fatally unpicked by a lover's betrayal. Her handling of the 'mad scene', in which her jealous would-be paramour Hilarion (Masahiro Nakaya, excellent) unmasks Albrecht and her heart gives out, is marvellously original; her Giselle seems to turn into a wraith before our very eyes, even before the moonlit, magical Act II has begun. She and Shun Izawa's Albrecht – not in quite the same league, but a gutsy, full-blooded interpretation nonetheless – make a convincingly smitten couple in the earthbound Act I. And together they considerably swell the pathos in Act II, when Giselle's ghost, putting love over retribution, sets out to defend her errant ex from an army of 'Wilis', the vengeful spirits of women who were jilted on their wedding days. And what an eye-widening army they are. In the Act I ensembles, on Thursday night, the corps were already displaying a rare cohesiveness; in Act II, they were positively unheimlich. I'm not sure I've ever seen such an utterly uniform, eerily hall-of-mirrors clutch of spectres in any Giselle, such a potent illusion of physical ethereality and subtly martial malevolence. (Incidentally, these oh-so-western wraiths make a beautiful contrast with those of Wimbledon-born Akram Khan's 2016 version for English National Ballet, which he effectively recast as ' yurei ', the lank-haired Japanese phantoms that have haunted many a terrifying movie.) I suppose a cynic might argue that while Wright's Giselle remains a cornerstone of the Royal Ballet's repertory, this is all a bit coals-to-Newcastle. But when those coals are burning this very brightly, you won't hear me complaining.
The Independent
21-07-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Steve Tandy backed to get Wales competing with top nations again
Steve Tandy has been championed to restore Welsh pride on the international stage after signing a three-year deal as Wales head coach. Tandy has left his role as Scotland defence coach – a position he has held since 2019 – to fill a vacancy created by Warren Gatland's departure in February. Cardiff coach Matt Sherratt has been in interim charge since and oversaw the end of Wales' 18-game losing streak – a record for a Tier One nation – in Japan earlier this month with a second Test victory over the Brave Blossoms. But Wales have turned to 45-year-old Tandy, who previously coached at Ospreys and Australian Super Rugby side Waratahs, to arrest a slide that has seen them finish bottom of the last two Six Nations Championships and plummet down the world rankings to 12th. 'Steve is an outstanding coach,' said Welsh Rugby Union director of rugby Dave Reddin, who revealed the interview process had initially mapped out around 130 coaches worldwide before being filtered down. 'I think his coaching journey shows someone that has been unafraid to really push himself into some uncomfortable experiences and really challenge the way that he was operating as a coach and develop as a result. 'As a proud Welshman it's the job he's wanted to move for. I know he'll be very missed by Scotland, he was a valued member of staff there and I'm delighted we've managed to secure his services. 'Are Wales going to be consistently ranked as the number one team in the world for the next 10 years? No, I don't think so. 'But can we be a real, genuine, top five nation who are constantly competing for Six Nations titles, who are capable of mixing it with the best in the world? 100 per cent. 'Otherwise, I wouldn't be here. I don't think anybody gets inspired by a team that says, 'well, we're going to rock up and do our best'. 'Especially a passionate rugby nation like Wales, I think we've got to be more ambitious than that.' Tandy, from Tonmawr between Neath and Port Talbot, becomes the first Welsh head coach of the men's national team since Gareth Jenkins nearly two decades ago. New Zealanders Gatland and Wayne Pivac have held the reins on a permanent basis since 2007 – and Reddin believes Tandy's background is a 'bonus'. He said: 'It will make a difference in how he's perceived – positive and negative. I'm conscious as a proud Welshman he's going to feel the responsibility of that. 'That wasn't part of the decision making process. It's a bonus that he's Welsh and I hope everyone will be kind to him because of that. 'On the surface it's great to have someone who has a natural affinity with their country. Ultimately that only goes so far, as it's about performances and the philosophy matching the expectations of the national public and what they want to see from their rugby team. 'They are the things that matter most and the Welsh side of things come after that. 'But if you looked at something that was ideal, to find the best coach and that they are Welsh, that's a perfect answer.' Tandy begins his tenure on September 1 and is set to lead Wales into the 2027 World Cup in Australia. Reddin said Tandy's backroom team would be finalised over the coming weeks and has not ruled retaining some current staff members.
