I went to see the ballet Sleeping Beauty on the live link up from the Royal Opera House to Empire cinemas across the country. I was in the cinema in my home town of Hemel Hempstead and was interested in how this would work. Would there be any atmosphere, would I be too close or to far from the dancers in the cinema setting. I thought at least I would see the whole stage as I can only afford the slips in the Royal Opera House. When half the stage is out of view you do begin to wish you had better seats. I think the live link up is an excellent idea. Yes you do lose a bit of the atmosphere and you miss the clapping at the end of a particular impressive dance, its just not done in the cinema is it. Best seat in the house though and you are taken by camera down to meet the musicians and behind the scenes as the dancers prepare to go on stage. The ballet itself is magical with Princess Aurora, the Lilac fairy and of course the wicked fairy stunning us with their skill. My only complaint would be it is a very long show with two short intervals and with the extra behind scene footage you sit in cinema seats for more than three hours.When you book go for the best seats they have.
