Latest news with #ScottishBallet
The National
24-05-2025
- Sport
- The National
Misha Botting on being inside the minds of Scotland's best
34 years on from leaving his country of birth and on the verge of closing one of the most significant chapters in his life, Botting is reflecting on a journey that is as fascinating as it is unique, and is contemplating how he rose to become one of this country's preeminent sports psychologists. Having grown up in Moscow, Botting's talents lay in ballet, becoming a dancer with the renowned Bolshoi Ballet Academy. On relocating to Scotland, Botting joined Scottish Ballet, with which he danced for five years before his days as a dancer came to an end. At this point in his life, Botting knew he wanted to remain in sport, although not necessarily as a coach and so and an undergraduate and then postgraduate degree course led him into the world of sports psychology. Botting grew up in Russia (Image: Colin Mearns) Botting would ultimately spend nearly two decades inside the minds of some of Scotland's very best athletes, with the highs as high as they come in the sporting world in the shape of Olympic gold medals for his charges. And there's been the less glorious but no less significant moments of helping athletes through injuries, disappointments and crises of confidence, too. Now, Botting, who has risen to become the sportscotland Institute of Sport Psychology Manager, is just weeks away from leaving the role that was so much more to him than just a job. 'After university, I felt like sports psychology was my calling and I feel so lucky to have been paid for a job which has never felt like a job, it's something I love to do,' he says. 'To be a sports psychologist, you have to be so emotionally invested and so while I still love helping individuals find solutions, 18 years is a long time and it just feels right to try something different.' The list of sports and individual athletes with whom Botting has worked is too lengthy to mention here (and, for Botting's sins, includes myself). But his most notable partnership, in results terms anyway, is with curler Eve Muirhead and her rink, with whom Botting worked for many years. Their partnership was as successful as they come, with Team Muirhead becoming Olympic champions at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Botting is far too modest to claim any significant credit for Team Muirhead's Olympic triumph but in understanding their journey to Olympic gold, it becomes apparent that the psychological work Botting did with Muirhead and her teammates was vital in allowing them to fulfil their potential. 'Working with Eve (Muirhead) and her team for Beijing 2022 was such an interesting experience because a year before they won gold they were in a bad, bad place - they could barely win a game and they were not certain to even be at the Olympics,' Botting says. Team Muirhead with their Olympic gold medals (Image: Getty Images) 'The team hadn't forgotten how to curl, rather their bad form was to do with the psychological side. But they made the adjustments and the compromises that they needed to become Olympic champions.' There were, says Botting, countless highs during the past 18 years of working with Scotland's elite. From helping athletes perform after deaths of coaches to overcoming the mental trauma of serious injury to providing athletes with tools to perform under the most intense of pressure, Botting's successes are plentiful. And a personal highlight, he recalls, was returning to his birth country to take part in the Opening Ceremony as a member of Team GB at the 2018 Sochi Winter Olympics. (Image: Colin Mearns) There is, perhaps surprisingly, a complete absence of lows when Botting reflects on his stellar career. The sports psychology mantra is, after all, that it's all about the process rather than the result and Botting fully subscribes to this. 'I genuinely can't remember the low points because I was never disappointed in anyone's results,' he says. "I was always impressed with athletes' commitment to the process because that's what it's all about. If an athlete puts their heart and soul into the process then that's all you can ask of them.' Botting's secret in becoming such a successful, liked and respected sports psychologist with so many of this country's top athletes is two-fold. Firstly, his experience as an elite performer himself has, he believes, been extremely useful. As is his willingness to do things slightly differently. 'In high-level sport, staying present in the moment is vital but it's also very difficult. It's like an emotional yo-yo, which I understand and the fact the athletes know I went through something similar when I was on stage really helped,' he says. 'Some of my practices might not be typical sports psychology and you will not find them in a textbook but these things helped me put my creativity into practice and help athletes to see the world in a slightly broader sense. 'I was working with a runner and in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics, he was injured and it was very difficult for him to cope so we created haiku for each other and that helped him appreciate parts of his life beyond athletics and understand that it wasn't just about the next Olympic Games. 'And I worked with an athlete who was speaking about hitting the wall in the marathon and so I got my trainers and ran the Edinburgh Marathon so I could understand what it was like. ]'It's one thing reading books and understanding statistics and research, but it's another thing feeling the sport on your skin.' Botting may have just weeks remaining of his role as sports psychologist to the great and the good of Scottish sport but the impact his work has had will remain etched in the memories of every athlete he paired up with. And, for Botting himself, the past 18 years are unforgettable. 'You see the tears of frustration or hear the screams from injury or cries of joy and you know an athlete has put everything into it,' he says. 'I've really connected with those feelings and that's what I've loved about this job. 'I've been blessed to work with so many incredible athletes across so many amazing sports and I'll miss it immensely but you get to a point whereby you just have to move on. And I'm at that point now.'
Daily Record
20-05-2025
- Daily Record
Scotland's best places to retire named as 'beautiful' destination tops list
One retirement hotspot was praised for its museums and cafés. Scotland's "best places to retire" have been named. Two destinations have been singled out as top locations to settle down for retirees. When deciding on a place to retire, there are many things to think about. Affordability, the abundance of green space, and the number of cafés and restaurants are among the factors to consider. Travel experts at Rest Less have shared a list of "14 of the best places to retire in the UK". They considered factors such as property prices, crime rates, amenities, and entertainment when putting together their list. Coming in at number one for Scotland is Edinburgh. The Scottish capital also placed at number 11 on the UK-wide list. Rest Less praised Edinburgh for its many historic sites and museums. Among the top attractions in the city for those with an interest in history are Edinburgh Castle and The Real Mary King's Close. The experts also described the Scottish capital as a top destination for food. As well as multiple Michelin-starred restaurants, the city has a wealth of beloved and hidden-gem eateries around every corner. However, Rest Less noted that property in the city is significantly more expensive when compared to elsewhere in Scotland. According to the experts, the average price of a house in Edinburgh is £338,307. Rest Less commented: "This beautiful and cosmopolitan town has plenty going for it, with dozens of historic sites, museums, and attractions—not to mention hundreds of cafes and pubs! The Edinburgh Fringe is also the world's biggest arts festival, and there's always something creative going on here." Meanwhile, the other Scottish destination to be featured on the list of the top places to retire is Glasgow. Scotland's largest city came in at number 13 on the overall list. Rest Less singled out Glasgow for being a more affordable alternative to Edinburgh when it comes to property. The average house price in the city was found to be £229,959. Glasgow was also noted for its central location. Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, and more are all easily reached by rail and bus. The experts described the city as a "national hub of culture". It is home to the Scottish Opera, the Scottish Ballet, the National Theatre of Scotland, and more. Glasgow is also a top destination for golf enthusiasts according to Rest Less. The city features approximately 90 golf courses in a 30-minute radius. The experts stated: "Though Glasgow traditionally had a reputation for being rather gritty, these days it's a national hub of culture. Home to the Scottish Opera, Scottish Ballet, and National Theatre of Scotland, if you like attending a good show, you'll be spoilt for choice. "Glasgow also has an unusually high number of golf courses, with around 90 within an hour of the city." Elsewhere, topping the overall list as the best place to retire in the UK is Plymouth. The experts praised the English city for its seaside cafés and restaurants and historic pubs. See below for the full list of the 14 best places to retire in the UK. More information about each one can be found on the Rest Less website. 14 of the best places to retire in the UK Plymouth York Swansea Sussex Cornwall Belfast The Lake District Norfolk Bristol Cardiff Edinburgh Newcastle-upon-Tyne Glasgow Lincolnshire
The Guardian
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Abuse, witch-hunts and hangings: why Arthur Miller's masterpiece The Crucible still haunts us
W hich is Arthur Miller's best play? Many would say Death of a Salesman. For me it is the multilayered The Crucible, which is currently enjoying a rash of revivals. Scottish Ballet are touring Helen Pickett's popular version and, in London, Shakespeare's Globe, breaking its usual Bardic custom, this week begins a nine-week run of Ola Ince's new production. Welcome as this focus on Miller's masterwork is, it also raises a number of questions. You can see why The Crucible is so visible right now and why the Globe dubs it a 'timely thriller'. Miller's account of the witch-hunts in Salem in 1692 was initially seen as a political parable about Senator McCarthy's investigation of suspected communists in the America of the early 1950s. Given the fact that in President Trump's America, freedom of assembly, of the press and of speech are no longer guaranteed, and that you can be threatened with deportation for taking part in a pro-Palestinian protest, it is no surprise that people turn to The Crucible. As Trump suppresses dissent and creates chaos, should we, as a form of protest, wean ourselves off US drama? Its popularity is also part of a renewed fascination with the climate of fear in the McCarthy era. David Edgar's Here in America explored the tension between Miller and his director, Elia Kazan, who named names to McCarthy's committee, while Ryan Calais Cameron's Retrograde, in contrast, shows a young Sidney Poitier steadfastly refusing to bow to political pressure. 'A timely thriller' … The Crucible at Shakespeare's Globe. While acknowledging that the rise of McCarthyism was one of his motives for writing The Crucible, Miller said there was something more: 'It was as though the whole country had been born anew, without a memory even of certain elemental decencies which no one would have imagined could be altered, let alone forgotten.' In other words, there is more to The Crucible than a single political parallel and, whenever I see the play, I am struck by its capacity to take on new meanings and to reflect the pressure of the times. I would cite three revivals in proof. I was lucky enough to catch Richard Eyre's 2002 Broadway production with Liam Neeson as John Proctor and Laura Linney as his wife Elizabeth: her performance sticks in the memory for its perfect mix of puritanical reproach and palpable love. But what was extraordinary, at a time when the word 'terrorist' was used with promiscuous abandon after 9/11, was Miller's awareness of society's tendency to demonise what it fears or fails to understand. In 2006 Dominic Cooke did a brilliant production for the RSC which almost literally allowed us to see the play in a new light. Hildegard Bechtler's set gave us glimpses of the Rousseau-like forest beyond the clapboard houses and Jean Kalman's lighting showed sunshine penetrating the plain interiors as if seeking permission to enter. And when deputy governor Danforth, who comes to investigate the accusations of witchcraft, declared 'A person is either with this court or he is against it', he uncannily anticipated a phrase used by President George W Bush, designed to suppress internal criticism of the Iraq war: 'Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists.' New light … Iain Glen and Helen Schlesinger as John and Elizabeth Proctor in Dominic Cooke's 2006 production for the RSC. Photograph: Tristram Kenton/The Guardian Miller's play took on yet another dimension with Yaël Farber's astonishing revival at the Old Vic in 2014. This coincided with a spate of stories in the media about the sexual exploitation of minors by TV entertainers and Catholic clerics – and reminded us that at the play's heart lies a story of an older man's abuse of his power over a young girl. Proctor has had sex with the 17-year-old Abigail Warren, and it is his later rejection of her that drives her to testify against her former employer and his wife. But, far from portraying Abigail as a vindictive minx, both Farber's production and Samantha Colley's performance suggested she was more victim than villain. In seeking retribution for a genuine wrong, she exposed Proctor's residual guilt and helped to destroy an already divided Salem. Arthur Miller: 'My legacy? Some good parts for actors' My admiration for Miller's play and my belief in its capacity to take on new meanings are, I hope, clear. But it is precisely because it is being revived at a time when President Trump is suppressing dissent and creating global chaos that I would raise another question: should we, as a form of intellectual protest, gradually wean ourselves off our dependence on American drama? I avoid the word 'boycott' because I suspect it is both impractical and undesirable but I recall that I did once ask Harold Pinter, because of his disgust with US foreign policy, which he once equated with that of Nazi Germany, whether he had ever thought of withdrawing his plays from American performance. There was – naturally – a long pause, before Pinter replied that he hoped the production of his plays would give support to groups as opposed as himself to the destructive lies of American politicians. It was a fair point. But even if a boycott of American plays, films and television is out of the question, I would suggest that we alter our angle of vision. I have read countless articles in the last month urging the UK to strengthen its political and economic ties with Europe, so why not add the arts to the list? It is of course true that the US and the UK are divided by a common language, but I have long argued for a greater awareness of the riches of European drama, which – aside from the work of the Citizens in Glasgow in its heyday, of the Almeida during the tenure of Jonathan Kent and Ian McDiarmid and of companies such as Cheek by Jowl and Complicité – has gone largely unheeded. Now surely is a good time to reassess our priorities. And while I've no doubt that the Globe's forthcoming production of The Crucible will prompt thoughts of the vicious polarities of Trump's America, the very fact of its doing so will remind us that there is a world elsewhere. The Crucible is at Shakespeare's Globe, London, from 8 May to 12 July
The Herald Scotland
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Review: Obsessive and frightening – and a company at its very best
A highly acclaimed premier at the Edinburgh International Festival was followed by a brief Scottish tour but Covid 19 lockdowns subsequently stymied revivals until now, when casts of talented new faces are delivering Pickett's concepts and characters with compelling energy and in-depth understanding. The Salem witch hunts, fuelled by misplaced religious fervour, took place in 1692/93 - costumes and an uncluttered set evoke that period but there is an inescapable topicality about what unfolds on-stage. Read more Review: Scottish Ballet: The Nutcracker, Theatre Royal | The Herald Swan Lake review: Theatre Royal, Glasgow: Scottish Ballet go bold | The Herald There is an underlying misogyny in how the 'Men of God' behave towards the women accused of being witches, and there is an edge of vindictive power-play in how the young girls point condemning fingers at the adult women who had previously controlled them. Underpinning all this, however, is the obsessive, vengeful plotting by the teenage Abigail (Kayla-Maree Tarantolo) against Elizabeth Proctor (Jessica Fyfe), the woman who has everything Abigail wants, including her husband John (Bruno Micchiardi). A fiercely raunchy duet with John means fleeting lust to him, but a bond of love to her - her subsequent sense of betrayal when Elizabeth forgives him and tender duets re-affirm their loving devotion which abides until his self-sacrifice parts them in death. All three shade persuasively nuanced motivation into technically assured performances, with other company dancers creating the overly pious, fear-ridden villagers with impressive acumen. The cinematic sweep of composer Peter Salem's score is vividly realised by the Scottish Ballet Orchestra - as in 2019, this Crucible shows the company at its creative best.
The Guardian
13-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Artists have the power to stand up for truth, says Edinburgh festival director
Musicians and artists should challenge disinformation and cynicism in global politics by standing up for fundamental truths, the violinist Nicola Benedetti has said. Benedetti, the director of the Edinburgh international festival, said the arts played an essential role during periods of turmoil by showing the best of human achievement. 'We're currently caught in a bewildering swirl of truth and alternative fact and manipulated language disguised as information,' she said, as she announced this year's programme, the theme of which is 'the truth we seek'. Speaking after the launch, Benedetti acknowledged she was referring to the crises that have erupted since Donald Trump resumed the US presidency. 'There's no point downplaying the presence of the United States [here]. Everyone is watching and there are huge tectonic shifts and enormous questions facing leadership and political leadership at the moment,' she said. 'But we have an advantage with the arts in that we can speak that language of allegory. We can speak to both pertinent and timeless issues at once, [so] now is the time to double down on exactly that.' The opening event features a marathon eight-hour performance at the Usher Hall of Sir John Tavener's religious song cycle The Veil of the Temple, which Benedetti said spoke to the role religious belief played in illuminating universal truths. Being staged for the first time in the UK in 20 years, it features 250 singers from several companies singing about the Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist faiths in five languages, including Aramaic and Church Slavonic. The following day the Usher Hall will host 120 teenage musicians from the NYO2 youth orchestra based at Carnegie Hall in New York, who start a three-year festival residency this year, as well as 20 young Scottish musicians. They will collaborate in a family concert that afternoon, followed by a performance of Prokofiev's fifth symphony. Benedetti said grand scale and mass participation were central to the festival's ethos. In another event, chamber musicians with the Aga Khan music programme would jam on the spot, with audience members able to request pieces of music. She said: 'We are committed to infusing a relatable, casual, open and trusting vibe into everything we do, in spirit and in action.' That would include again selling about 50,000 tickets for £30 or less, alongside £10 offers and half-price tickets for teenagers. Other notable events, she said, included the premiere of a new play starring the Succession actor Brian Cox, satirising the Scottish banker Fred Goodwin and his role in the 2008 financial crisis, with Cox playing the ghost of the economist Adam Smith. There is also a new Scottish Ballet production on the feud between Mary, Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I, featuring punk couture costumes, stilts and a male dancer playing Mary; an Australian production of the opera Orpheus and Eurydice, featuring a contemporary circus company and video projections; and the premiere of a hip-hop interpretation of JS Bach's work featuring dancers from Acland Burghley school in north London and 18th-century period instruments. This year's festival would be smaller than previous years, Benedetti said, because of funding cuts, with contemporary music and opera pared back. Speaking in January, Benedetti expressed alarm about the threat to Scottish arts from cuts in government and philanthropic funding. But she said a subsequent award to the festival of £11.75m over the next three years, part of a £200m nationwide funding package from Creative Scotland, was 'pivotal'. She said she hoped three-year funding pledges would be honoured. 'You have to proceed with a level of confidence and plan ambitiously, but you also hope for a level of non-partisan integrity around promises made,' she said. The Edinburgh international festival runs from 1 to 25 August and tickets go on general sale on 27 March via Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Figures in Extinction Nederlands Dans Theater explores humanity's destructive impact on the world through soundscapes, dialogue and dance. Make it happen Brian Cox plays the ghost of Adam Smith in a satire about Royal Bank of Scotland's role in the 2008 banking crisis, in a show by National Theatre of Scotland and Dundee Rep. The Veil of the Temple Sir John Tavener's eight-hour choral work involves 250 singers and features the Monteverdi choir, the National Youth Orchestra and Edinburgh Festival Chorus. Mary Queen of Scots This Scottish Ballet premiere from the choreographer Sophie Laplane fuses a punk aesthetic with renaissance power politics in a story about the conflict between Mary and Queen Elizabeth I. Orpheus and Eurydice Australian opera companies along with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the modern circus company Circa present an acrobatic 'ancient tale of love, lust and loss'.
