My friend and I were students at the College of Art and were offered the opportunity to “perform” as huntsmen in act one of Swan Lake at the Saturday performances. We were paid ,as I recall, one pound for each performance. It was an enlightening experience! I was amazed at how little we were prepared for the curtain up- “ just find yourselves something that fits from this pile of clothes and boots and we will tell you what to do as we go along” .The costumes left a lot to be desired and we had to”drink” from some smelly fibreglass goblets and pose in various locations on stage clutching longbows. The cast whispered to us what to do as the performance progressed and any romantic allusions of ballet were soon dismissed by the close proximity of the action with sweat flying and the occasional muttered obsenity! It was a wonderful experience and has at least enabled me to claim that I did once perform with the Royal Ballet!