BALLET
CENTRAL
at
the Civic Theatre
For
this, his inaugural tour as Artistic Director, Christopher Marney has
put together a stunning varied programme: a two-hour showcase for the
emerging talent of the Central School of Ballet.
Thirty
young dancers, seven presentations, book-ended by two fresh looks at
familiar repertoire. The last, and the longest, was Matthew Bourne's
Highland Fling, first seen in 1994.
It's a typically tongue-in-cheek take on La Sylphide,
keeping the gist of the original story, and the Scottish setting, but
giving it a make-over for the Trainspotting generation. So
as well
as the silver birch backcloth, the setting includes an old armchair
and some dustbins down stage left. The
Sylphs sport little angel wings, James a kilt. Plenty
of fun in the glade, with young James eager to join the corps,
until suddenly the mood changes as his beloved's wings are clipped.
Beautifully danced, and imaginatively staged, with athletic work from
Adam Davies, and a moving performance from Brittanie Dillon as the
Lead Sylph.
Jenna
Lee's Romeo and Juliet – the Ballroom scene – uses Prokofiev's
score in an original, eloquent narrative. Amy McEntee's Juliet is shy
and apprehensive with Paris and has some lovely moments with her two
friends. The Montague boys do some spectacular showing-off. There is
romance of course, but frustration too, with the dancers forming
barriers between Juliet and her Romeo [Craig McFarlane] And
then a
brief expression of innocent joy before the tragedy we know is to
come.
A
stylish glimpse of La Bayadere, with scarves, an impressive pas de
deux, and a traditional tableau to finish.
In
more contemporary work, we see fluent avian grace in Liam Scarlett's
Indigo Children, edgy urban graffiti in Sleepless, choreographed by
Malgorzata Dzierzon with music by Philip Feeney, played live, and
Christopher Bruce's enigmatic Mya, danced to Arvo Part – three
cocooned figures moving in witty, wistful shapes and patterns.
And
a memorable look at the Castle Dracula scene from the ballet created
in 1996 by Michael Pink and Christopher Gable, with an original
pastiche score by Philip Feeney. Haunted by succubi, Alvaro Olmedo
has a strong, erotically charged duet with Matthew Morrell's
magnetic,
hypnotic
Count.
As
ever, a wonderful display of burgeoning dance talent, and an
excellent sampler of what ballet can do. If you missed it at the
Civic, it's at the Mercury in Colchester in June, and at the Kenneth More in Ilford in July.
production
photograph: Bill Cooper
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