When you look at the casting of Marianela - Timeless, it seems there's been a mistake. Surely Núñez isn't actually doing four different pieces? Two being grand pas de deux and one a 35 minute dramatic ballet?
But yes, that is the case. Anyone who is aware of Núñez won't be surprised. For the last 28 years she has been showing her super-human attributes to all who see her perform. A dancer of extreme discipline, faultless technique and range, she absolutely deserves a place in the ballet hall of fame.
Núñez has waited a long time for her own programme, and here it is. The repertoire choices acknowledge her long tenure at the Royal Ballet and key partnerships, but it doesn't necessarily stir the soul.
Opening is Jerome Robbins's In the Night. It's a ballet for three couples looking at the trials and tribulations of relationships, from quiet comfort to toxic codependency. Robbins knows people, and how to translate them into ballet, so although there's undeniable emotional nuance, I find the whole a bit of a flat watch.
After the interval we have five divertissement. Núñez is the bookends starting with Le Corsaire and finishing with Tchaikovsky pas de deux.
She and Vadim Muntagirov are indeed a handsome couple in Le Corsaire. Elegance and authority abound. Núñez doesn't come off the centre line during her 32 fouetté, and Muntagirov brings class to pyrotechnics like nobody else.
Tchaikovsky pas de deux was painfully slow so I won't say too much. Balanchine cannot be done successfully at this tempo, regardless of how good the dancers are. And they are good. The only appropriate speed was Núñez's solo, and Patricio Revé's dancing throughout confirmed why he's a superb acquisition for the Royal Ballet.
Akane Takada showed subtle expression in Wayne McGregor’s Infra pas de deux with Calvin Richardson, and Fumi Kaneko almost sent us to sleep in Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain duo with Lukas Bjørneboe Brændsrød. Not their fault, it was just another insanely slow rendition.
The divertissement highlight was Matthew Ball and Mayara Magri in Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo & Juliet balcony pas de deux. Both of these dancers are intelligent artists and keep pushing themselves. Ball showed refined execution in Romeo's opening solo, with renversé to die for. And Magri keeps communicating a deepening of her emotional understanding of dance. That said, naturalism will always trump affectation for me.
Closing the evening was Frederick Ashton’s Marguerite & Armand. This is a hallowed work relating to the legacy of the original cast, Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev, so it's understandable why Núñez chose it. Her Armand was William Bracewell, which saw a debut from him, and it was a strong-ish start. Individual interpretation is key, but I see Armand as a privileged, arrogant puppy. I didn't feel enough of this.
Núñez is a knowing Marguerite, which fits the role, and from the second half of The Country pas de deux - when her fate is sealed, the performances grew in depth and poignancy from both leads. Marguerite & Armand is a stunning work but fickle. I wonder if one needs to be up close and personal to really connect with the characters’ unravelling. All I know is that the film of Sylvie Guillem and Nicolas Le Riche is never far from my mind.
So what did Marianela - Timeless teach us? That Núñez is a ballerina of extreme discipline and rigour, and these are attributes to be highly regarded. Moving forwards I feel curation and music direction need more fine tuning. It would've been of interest to see Núñez in a new work by a choreographer she's inspired by. Likewise to see her dancing pushed by effervescent tempi. Onwards.
Marianela - Timeless continues at the Royal Ballet and Opera until 2 August
Photo Credits: ©2026 Maria-Helena Buckley
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