“Regarding Acosta, I’m afraid that with the exception of your good selves, I thought it was really beyond bad. The problem for me is that I’m quite heavily involved in contemporary dance (I’m music director of a contemporary dance company) and to me is just seemed that two fabulous mainstream performers had got together to do something edgy and hardcore, but weren’t really aware of where dance is today, and instead strung together lots of clichés, particularly in terms of movement making, and thought it daring, where in fact it was just really passé (and I’m talking late 70’s here!).

The effects were great, as was the dancing, but it all really lacked coherence, and ultimately any real, communicative emotion, and as such became style over substance to a shocking degree. Also, with the exception of the Maliphant piece, the music was largely incidental, or atmospheric, which again was very edgy in the 70s but really is infra dig now. Have to say I was very, very disappointed.”

“The choir admirably sings.”

But otherwise a negative review.

@mrchrisaddison: Went to see Carlos Acosta last night. No fan of dance, me, but hand on heart it was one of the best things I’ve ever seen.

http://twitter.com/mrchrisaddison/statuses/20365400563

Best summarised this way “All very strange, yet unexpectedly moving.”

They didn’t like it very much, but thought we were OK.

“At intervals during the evening, we see a crowd at the back of the stage. They’re the members of the Pegasus Choir, who finally step forward to sing Morten Lauridsen’s “O Magnum Mysterium”. The singing is clean and strong; there’s no dancing here to match it.”

“I am really excited to be currently working at the London Coliseum in Carlos Acosta’s Premieres. It is a really inspiring production with many mixed media collaborators and featuring the amazing Pegasus Choir. Hearing them warm up yesterday in the Coliseum’s canteen was an amazing moment that filled the room with admiration.”

“Premieres is a mixed bill of solos and duets with the very excellent Royal Ballet dancer Zenaida Yanowsky, plus the wonderful Pegasus Choir. She dances Kim Brandstrup’s insightful Footnote to Ashton, and he performs Russell Maliphant’s mini modern classic Two.”

“Listening to the departing audience, it’s fair to say there was bafflement – “Is that his first contemporary piece?” (it wasn’t); “I’m silent because I’m thinking about it” – but this is no bad thing. Every athlete, even the most extraordinary, will exchange vigour for experience. Acosta seems to understand that a dancer has to keep moving.”