Random jottings on a summer day

I’m on holiday and apart from keeping up with some of my favourite Twitter feeds and ballet blogs, not much going on here in the world of dance.  However, my old favourite BBC Radio 4 provided some dance again.  Margot Fonteyn was profiled as one of their  “The New Elizabethans” series, which profiles 60 public figures nominated to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.  The programme, narrated by James Naughtie, mixed commentary and recordings of her speaking in a brief history. 

It was a fun 15 minutes, and reminded me of my mother and the time she sat down next to Margot Fonteyn and insisted that, and here I have to admit, I am not sure what she said, that the Vic-Wells or Sadler’s Wells Ballet had danced “Polovtsian Dances”  during the 1930s when my mother was living in London.  Dame Margot said my mother was wrong (she was right, my mother was wrong), the Royal Ballet first dancing this in the 1960s.  I have wondered since who my mother saw, and need to do a bit of research.  If any one can supply an answer it would be most welcome!

You may be wondering how my mother came to be sitting next to Dame Margot.  Well, in 1975   Peter Darrell choreographed “The Scarlet Pastorale” for Margot Fonteyn, and as we (my mother and I) were Friends of Scottish Ballet, we got invited to a reception for Dame Margot.  My friend Steinvör and I were eager to get autographs, and one of the dancers (Patricia Rianne) took our programmes from us and got not only the signature of most of the company members, but also Margot Fonteyn’s.  I still remember going back to the theatre the next day to collect the programmes, and still treasure it in my collection.

This blog is not quite turning out how I had intended, it is still needing to find a direction and focus, but I can feel it is turning into a mix of memories linked to reviews.  If so, then expect blogs on programme collecting, memorable performances and other things in the future!

Picture source:  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Choumoff_-_Adolph_Bolm,_Polovtsian_Dances.jpg