Manon review: Hayward shines as the heroine every ballerina wants to play

There's a reason every ballerina wants to play Manon, the doomed convent girl turned high-class prostitute of Kenneth MacMillan’s 1974 smash hit.

By turns innocent and immoral, avaricious and romantic, she is no simple tart with a heart but the kind of flawed heroine rarely seen among ballet’s princesses and ingénues. And if dancers love to play her, so audiences love to watch her; despite an initial frosty critical reception this three-act work is now one of the Royal Ballet’s signature pieces.

For some, the key to Manon is her greed, to others her naivety; for Francesca Hayward — replacing an ill Laura Morera— it’s pure terror at falling victim to the poverty that surrounds her. Swept away by passion for impoverished student Des Grieux, she is even quicker to ditch him for furs and jewels the moment they are offered by a rich older benefactor.

Hayward once again proves why she is one of British ballet’s most exciting young stars; in the beauty of her line, the precision of her dancing but also in the real risks she is prepared to take. This ballet may be crammed full of busy brothel and street scenes, but its emotional heart is told in a series of intricate pas-de-deux — which she nails, one by one.

Offering strong support were Alexander Campbell, exceptional as Lescaut, Manon’s amoral brother, Claire Calvert as his long-suffering mistress and Federico Bonelli as the betrayed Des Grieux.

Until May 16, Royal Opera House