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Instructive to see Ansanelli in Serenade. She has an attack and an understanding of the implicit drama of the work that makes the rest of the women look only charming and polite. Fluent yes, but the RB ensemble only attains that sort of fluency of a foreign language that is marred by failings in accent and inflection, where natives in the language achieve naturally.

The pliancy and bounce of Ansanelli’s jumps are full of energy, full of precision – against her the others don’t look so tightly sprung. Sitting so close revealed the sometimes lack of alignment of the ensemble’s lines, arms, hands and chins, though the generally the corps was crisper in the sections when Ansanelli was among them, setting the pace.

Pennefather and Hristov were ciphers, making less of an impression than the men usually do here.

The only frisson was when the three supporting boys arrived for the final lift and promenade off. Here was a cold blast of something spine tingling. Elsewhere there had been no sense that we were looking in on a chilling distillation of the essence of Swan Lake or Bayadere, as is the impression when NYCB perform Serenade.

The lighting remains sludgy.

“Whatever have you got on?!” once said an old family friend to my father, commenting on an unfortunate piece of headgear. What would he have said about the costumes in L’invitation au voyage! Full marks to Mr Bonelli though, carrying off his outfit with some dignity.

I remember reading the positive response to the premiere of L’invitation in 1982 but didn’t see the work then – it’s always been on my would-like-to-see-list. Then, as now, there was always the thirst for new works. Then, unlike now, there was a steadier flow of new pieces finding their way to the stage. In the early 80s Ashton and MacMillan were still producing (also from 1982 I remember MacMillan’s Orpheus). Corder was only one of a number of younger choreographers (Bintley, Deane, Page, Alston) who were being commissioned. Commissioned yes, but not really being revived, to allow audiences and choreographers to reconsider and appreciate those new works.

I recall, from a slightly later time, Bintley commenting that the first time he saw his original version of Cyrano on the stage he could tell what was wrong with it, but didn’t have the time to put it right. That need to reconsider and revise, it seems to me, is part of the creative process. Without the benefit of a work being in performance, with the perspective a quick revival, choreographers are denied the opportunity to refashion their creations. Audiences too are denied to re-appreciate new works that, with time (and greater conviction by the management), could lead to an expanded repertoire, so that when pieces such as L’invitation do put in an appearance they don’t sit so uneasily on the stage now.

Perhaps shiny metallic piping was the look in 1982 (there certainly was a lot of it in MacMillan’s Orpheus later that year too). The designs just get in the way of some interesting choreography. The programme quotes Corder as saying “I would like to think I am part of that ongoing British tradition and lineage.” Interesting, as to my eyes at least, Corder’s choreography here combines the best qualities of his lineage, the poetic lyricism of Ashton and the molten physicality of MacMillan.

For, even if we were to jettison the designs for something simpler, the harder thing to appreciate now is the choreography itself. In the years since L’invitation was created, since Ashton and MacMillan died, there has been a shift in the way the RB dance and move. Now there is a greater physicality, edge and athleticism, that means they can do better (if not perfect) justice to Balanchine now, as well as to the current crop of “contemporary” choreographers. L’invitation reflects a generation when the RB moved with a classicism grounded in greater lyricism, a flowing sculptural physicality and poise. These are the qualities that Corder has captured in L’invitation au voyage and were the qualities best expressed by Melissa Hamilton and Federico Bonelli. The rest of the cast did not look so convinced by their task and their lack of conviction was more damaging than even the designs.