McCartney triumphs in 'Ocean's Kingdom' ballet debut: on scene reports

• See a special video of Paul McCartney and Nancy Shevell arriving for "Ocean's Kingdom" at left. 
  
• Also see pictures of Paul and Nancy and celebrities who attended the premiere at left in the slideshow.
  

"The forecasted rain and thundershowers didn’t materialize in NYC last night, and it turned out to be a perfect night for the red carpet gala premiere of 'Ocean’s Kingdom.' Crowds gathered early, and lined the walkway from Broadway to the John Koch theater entrance at Lincoln Center, and many celebs were in attendance… James McCartney, Jon Bon Jovi, Little Steven, Micky Dolenz, Alec Baldwin and Lorne Michaels were among those we recognized!

 

"Paul, of course, kept us waiting until 7:22pm!  My friends and I were standing at the barrier at the end of the red carpet, closest to the theater entrance, and you could hear the screams and the flashbulbs going off like crazy further down the line as the signal that he’d finally arrived!   It took a few minutes for he and Nancy to make their way down the length of the carpet to the door, but he took the time to stop and wave along the way, and we got a very good look as he stopped for several seconds to wave to us before going inside.  Stella was also with them, along with several others.

 

"After he went in, there was a massive move of the gathered crowd towards the doors, and it didn’t seem to take too long to get everyone inside.  The lights came down not long after we took our seats in the fourth ring.  Paul and Nancy apparently were seated in the first ring… we couldn’t see them from where we were sitting, but we could see audience members in the upper rings on the sides, craning their necks for a look at him!

 

"The orchestra conductor, Fayçal Karoui, made the initial introductions and thanked Paul for his beautiful music and for working so closely with them.  He talked about how mood and feeling is conveyed in each movement of the music, and he directed the orchestra in playing snippets of each piece to demonstrate.  

"Peter Martins then took the stage and also profusely thanked Paul for writing the music and for his close participation and involvement in the rehearsals.  He then said he had a surprise for him, that he’d decided not to tell him about beforehand.  He said the tradition of the ballet was to drink a toast to the composer, though originally, it had been a toast of vodka in the tradition of the Russian ballet!  Instead, he had a tea cup and a tea pot of 'English tea' brought out, and he raised the cup to the composer, amidst great cheering and applause!   

 

"The ballet began, and lasted about an hour.  The dancing was just beautiful. For me, it was the first time I’d ever been to a ballet, and it was amazing to see the choreography, the backdrop against which the dancers performed with the changing scenery and effects so beautifully and simply done, and of course, the skill of the performers.  Stella’s costumes were beautiful and colorful, and flowed around the dancers as they danced.  The music was fantastic, and the orchestra did a wonderful job.  

 

"At the end, the dancers took several curtain calls and the lead ballerinas were presented with bouquets of flowers. Stella was brought out to take a bow and she was also given a bouquet of pink flowers.  

 

"Then Paul was last to come on stage to loud cheering and applause.  He took bows to several curtain calls, just like he does on stage at the end of his concerts, though the ballet company didn’t have the “hang” of bowing in unison like his band does!  He gave Stella a big kiss and they almost got caught in the curtain!  Then he and Peter Martins then came out by themselves for another final bow.  

 

"A tent was set up at the side of the building for the gala dinner that followed.  

 

"There were 3 items for sale inside Lincoln Center, a poster for $10, postcards with the Oceans Kingdom logo for $1 each, and a blue T-shirt with the digital notes on the front and back, and “Paul McCartney, Oceans Kingdom” on the sleeve for $30 each.

 

"Most definitely, a splendid time was had by all!"