Mexican flavours infuse Wheeldon's Like Water for Chocolate

Francesca Hayward (Tita)

Anna Rose O'Sullivan (Gertrudis) and Cesar Corrales (Juan Alejandrez)

Francesca Hayward (Tita) and Marcelino Sambé (Pedro)

Laura Morera (Mama Elena) and Marcelino Sambé (Pedro)

Marcelino Sambé (Pedro)

By Graham Watts, 05 June 2022

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“bringing the pacy momentum of musical theatre into classical ballet”

Reviewed at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 2 June 2022

Like Water for Chocolate (Christopher Wheeldon)

The Royal Ballet

Alondra de la Parra, Conductor

Bob Crowley, Set Designer

Natasha Katz, Lighting Designer

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden

Luke Halls, Video

Tomás Barreiro, Guitar

Siân Griffiths, Mezzo-soprano

Francesca Hayward, Dancer

Laura Morera, Dancer

Marcelino Sambé, Dancer

Mayara Magri, Dancer

Anna Rose O'Sullivan, Dancer

Christina Arestis, Dancer

Matthew Ball, Dancer

Cesar Corrales, Dancer

Gary Avis, Dancer

Isabella Gasparini, Dancer

Atlanta Ballet shines in a mixed contemporary program

Rebecca Ehrhardt, 3rd April

Atlanta Ballet's Golden Hour program featured two world premieres and the Atlanta premiere of Christopher Wheeldon's Within the Golden Hour.

*****

NYCB: Ratmansky’s The Naked King is not satire, but good fun

Ivy Lin, 7th February

New York City Ballet presents a very entertaining quadruple bill which includes Alexei Ratmansky’s latest work, The Naked King, showing off the company’s comic talents.

****1

The Royal Ballet’s Like Water for Chocolate is sumptuous but complex

Amanda Jennings, 1st October

The Royal Ballet’s season opener, Christopher Wheeldon’s Like Water for Chocolate, is visually tremendous, very well danced but the many principal and soloist characters are difficult to keep up with.

****1

Ballet Nights makes an impressive and unforgettable Scottish debut

Kathy Elgin, 4th July

Ballet Nights is more than an evening of party pieces: it showcases emerging talent alongside older favourites and, in the case of this first Scottish outing, has an eye to local tradition.

****1

ABT in Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale: CliffsNotes Shakespeare

Ivy Lin, 2nd July

Christopher Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale is a sumptuous looking production but on this occasion, it didn’t come to life emotionally.

***11

Wheeldon’s Alice: The Royal Ballet shines in a vehicle of excellence

Amanda Jennings, 13th June

Christopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland shows off The Royal Ballet's roster of supreme dance actors in every version of technical wizardry and comic incarnation.

****1

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Graham Watts

Graham Watts is a freelance dance writer and critic writing regularly for Dancing Times, Dance Europe, Danza Europa, and many more publications. He regularly writes features for Sadler’s Wells, London Coliseum and La Scala. Chairman of the Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle in the United Kingdom and of the UK National Dance Awards he has interviewed many of the greatest names in dance including Maya Plisetskaya, Vladimir Vasiliev, Boris Eifman, Alexei Ratmansky, Andris Liepa, Sir Peter Wright, David Bintley and Dame Gillian Lynne. When not involved in dance Graham is a keen fencer, and has captained the British Sabre team.

Mexican flavours infuse Wheeldon's Like Water for Chocolate for The Royal Ballet