Following our attendance at the opera Maskarade (28 September 2005, Royal Opera House), a group of BBCM children saw the Delibes/Ashton ballet Sylvia. Here follow their reviews and a postscript by Agnes Kory:

Act l was very nice. I liked to see the group dancing and the statue, the God of Love. It was very sad when Aminta got shot by Sylvia's arrow. I liked it when the God of Love shot Sylvia with his magic arrow (because I like magic a lot). When Eros brings Aminta back to life with the red flower, that was magical and fascinating. Act lll was the best because I like the colours of the boat and the sails which ended up in a very nice place. There was a festival with lot of people dancing and with beautiful ballet dancers. Some of the dancers looked like fairies in the pink and white short dresses.
I thought Sylvia was marvellous because of the way they made the story.
Joshua Leonce-Weekes, age 5

I liked the background and I liked the hall because it was big and clean. The seats were very comfortable and I had a very good view. I liked the way there were boxes where people sat so that people did not have to squash at the bottom. The music was fast and slow, and sometimes a note lasted for a very long time. I also liked the way the conductor moved his stick. The costumes were soft and sparkly, and had different patterns on them. I liked the way the dancers moved. Sometimes they moved quickly, sometimes they moved slowly and sometimes they moved in the air. I liked the statue because it was really a person. There were loads of green and that is my favourite colour. I enjoyed the two intervals and the three acts. Afterwards everyone got a bag filled with ballet picture cards, a notebook, a light-up pen and a pencil. Best of all there was an umbrella. I liked the ballerinas whom we met afterwards. They were called Sian and Victoria. They were very kind because they gave me a present of the ballet shoes used by Marianela Nunez, the famous dancer who was dancing the part of Sylvia. I like the way they encourage school children to listen to music and you can hear what notes the orchestra is playing.
Hollie Gold, age 6

I love Sylvia because I like the music which started forte and the sound was beautiful. I like all the dancers, except Orion, and the scenes where Sylvia gets married and when many clowns come in at the beginning.
I enjoyed a cup of strawberry ice cream and some sweeties with Kay and May.
Miteki Ochi, age 6

In Sylvia, the music was very strong with lots of forte playing in it. It was interesting when Eros was dressed in a blanket and turned a white rose into red, and then turned Aminta back to life.
At the end they all danced together to the happiest music and the dancing was very happy too.
Kay Howard-Shigeno, age 6

I liked the ballet dancers very much because they were very good. They danced well and they had lovely costumes. Sylvia was the best because she danced the most. I liked Sylvia's helpers too. The music was very nice, I heard many instruments playing at the same time. I listened to the violins because I play the violin at home. I heard two violins playing very softly. My favourite ballet part was in Act II, when the men gave jewels and clothes to Sylvia in Orion's cave but she did not want them.
The scene changes were very interesting. I liked the conductor because he conducted well. I like the Greek costumes which were different from normal ballet clothes.
In the first interval I had a chocolate ice cream. But in the second interval I did not.
At the end of the ballet we were given bags to take home and there were good presents in the bag. Afterwards some BBCM children went to see the ballet dancers.
Kata Oldland, age 6

Yesterday I went to the ballet at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and I watched "Sylvie". The dresses of the ballerinas were very nice and the lights were fantastic. I really liked the colours: the orange, the yellow, the red, the green, the light blue and the purple.
Anna Medeossi, age 7

With my music school we went to see the ballet Sylvia at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden. Sylvia is a love story with a happy ending. The story is told in three parts through beautiful music and dancing. My favourite part was Act 3, especially at the end when the ballet dancers bowed. I enjoyed it very much and I was happy to meet the dancers after the show. Thank you very much!
Natalia Elliott, age 7

The orchestra was keeping together with a clear beat. The dancers were keeping together with the music. I thought the orchestra could have had more dynamics. The ballet looked difficult with all the jumping. The dancers had expressions on their faces as they danced: it made the ballet look realistic.
May Howard-Shigeno, age 9

This is a wonderful ballet. I haven't been to one before and I thought it was really lovely. There was so much to look at. The costumes were a bit Greek (Aminta) and a bit Arabian (Orion). You could tell that Aminta and his friends were the goodies, Orion and his servants were the baddies.
It was unexpected when Eros moved from his statue because he had been so still and white like marble. I expected someone to come and replace him. Even when he was the Old Magician you could see his white hands and a bit of his white face so you knew it was Eros.
The music was marvellous because you could hear the violins, cellos, bassoons, horns, trumpets and flutes. I could recognise the tunes of the different people because I had read the story and listened to the music. When Orion was dancing I could hear low instruments like drums and bassoons. Sylvia had horns and strings.
The goats were my favourite dancers because they were so funny to look at. The male goat had a funny tail and weird horns that looked like ears.
We were given a lot of good things to take home, such as an umbrella, cards, a word-search, a pen, a rubber and a pencil. It made the whole thing even more special. Thank you, Royal Opera House and thank you Agnes!
Otto Saner, age 9

I think that the ballet Sylvia was magnificent. Personally I think that it was better than the Maskarade. The ballet was nice and the special effects were amazing. The dancing went really well with the music. The person in the grey cloak was a bit 'freaky'. The two goats did not do very much but I liked their little tails. I also liked when Aminta got an arrow in his stomach. I did not like Orion for some odd reason. I was not sure, if one of the bows was meant to be broken at one point. My favourite dancers, by far, were Aminta and Sylvia. It was really nice meeting two ballet dancers backstage and taking pictures with them. Thank you all for the wonderful ballet. Good Bye!
Oscar Blouin Cooke, age 10

Sylvia is a romantic love story, a beautiful ballet, a story of love winning over everything. Sylvia is one of the goddess Diana's nymphs. The story opens as she is hunting in the forest with her followers for deer and wild boar, when they find the simple shepherd Aminta's cloak. They drag Aminta out of the bush. He has been spying on them and is dazzled by Sylvia's beauty. He admits he loves her but in her anger she kills him in front of the statue of Eros, the God of Love. Eros shoots her with one of his arrows. Her followers are worried that she might die but, when she pulls the arrow out of her, she finds she is not hurt. When she turns around she feels emptiness in her heart as she stares at the lifeless body of Aminta.
This is only the first part of the magnificent ballet Sylvia. Aminta is later brought back to life by Eros and finally he and Sylvia are united.
The people glided across the stage as they danced to the auspicious music. The music was exciting, and particularly atmospheric and scary when Orion took Sylvia away. The costumes were effervescent but my favourite costume was the one that Sylvia had on at the end.
I would like to thank you so much for letting us see the ballet.
Akira Leyow, age 11

This ballet is based on the poem called Aminta, written by Torquato Tasso in 1563. It was the first ballet to be performed at the Paris Opéra's new Palais Garnier in 1876, with choreography by Louis Mérante and with music by Léo Delibes. The version we saw was choreographed by Sir Frederick Ashton.
I felt that most of the costumes and the decor were based on Greek mythology. For the small kids the story line would be hard to follow but the dancing was great and they made it look so easy which shows how much they must have practiced. My favourite character was Orion because he showed what most people are like. Sylvia was a Greek nymph and Aminta was not as masculine as I was hoping for. I thought that the other characters did superbly well even if I did not understand the bits with the goats. I have left the best for last: it was the music and at times I closed my eyes just to listen to the music. The Royal Opera House is the perfect setting for this ballet. The two intervals helped, otherwise the smaller kids could get agitated though I don't think so as this ballet was enchanting and really great.
Hugo Blouin Cooke, age 13

We have heard of Diana a lot because the Goddess of the Hunt and Chastity was quite a well-known character in ancient mythology. But thanks to composer Leo Délibes, to choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton and to the dancers of the Royal Opera House, we have also learnt about Diana's lovely nymphs, about Sylvia and her love story.
The brilliant ballet music was on all that week in the Oldlands` house, therefore on the day of the performance the sounds of Sylvia`s music were already familiar.
Sylvia consists of three acts. The first act is the longest one (39 minutes). It was followed by two shorter acts (19 and 32 minutes). The dynamic plot, the wonderful music and the fabulous scenery carried us along. "My eyes were stuck to the stage" said 7 years old Anna to me in the interval. First we were in a mystical woodland, than we found ourselves in Orion`s (the evil hunter) island cave. The lively colours of the costumes and Sylvia`s seductive dance recalled those of eastern harems in my mind.
In the third act everything was lighter and more elated. We went from darkness to light the same way as Aminta returned from the other side to his faithful lover, Sylvia.
During the intervals we went up to the new wing of the opera house where we very much enjoyed the bright architecture. I am sure the children have gained very much from this ravishing ballet performance.
Zita Újvárosi, au-pair from rural Hungary (on her first visit to a ballet)

Postscript by Agnes Kory:
For me the most wonderful aspect of any Ashton choreography is that not only does Sir Frederick Ashton tell a story but he also portrays the music. There are no steps or, indeed, not even slight movements without reference to the music. I feel tempted to say that if you cannot hear the musical phrases of a ballet score, just watch Ashton's choreography and the musical direction will become clear. In Sylvia, too, Léo Delibes' excellent score was superbly realised by Ashton. Rarely is the unity of arts so evident as in an Ashton ballet. Humour and nature are also integral parts of almost any Ashton choreography including Sylvia.
I cannot watch the stage at our BBCM opera/ballet outings (as I am too busy watching the BBCM children) but I can state with confidence that the Sylvia performance we attended was not a second-team underpowered performance for 'only' children: it was a superb performance with regular experienced Royal Ballet dancers giving their best.
Thanks to BBCM father Alan Gold, after the matinee we met two of the solo dancers: both Victoria Hewitt and Sian Murphy were charming and very kind to the children.