Sleeping Beauty
The
Imperial Russian Ballet Company
Canberra Theatre
22-23 August 2012
Reviewed by Samara Purnell
The scene begins with the Master of Ceremonies of the Royal
Court sporting surely the worst wig to have ever graced a stage. Thankfully (as
it was becoming hard to stifle giggles), it is explained when great clumps of
it are ripped off later in the scene.
The Imperial Russian Ballet Company, whose dancers are drawn
from top ballet schools around Russia, performed Swan Lake in Canberra in 2009
and similar gripes surface with this performance of Sleeping Beauty as with Swan
Lake: The corps, incorporating the widest range of physiques and statures I can
recall seeing in a company of late, were sometimes out of sync with each other
and the music, perhaps strange for a country known for its ballet dancers and
its precision in the arts, as demonstrated lately in gym and synchronized
swimming. And attention to detail let the production down in small part -
slightly ill-fitting/made costumes, less than fantastic audio editing, split
leaps that could have been higher.
Lina Seveliova is blessed with the biggest, prettiest blue
eyes imaginable and her pretty face and vulnerability make her a very endearing
Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). She danced the lead role charmingly and proficiently. Radamara Nazarenko-Duminica was also a stand-out and executed
her roles as Audacity and Princess Florine with maturity and confidence.
The prophesised spindle here has been replaced by a knitting
needle, which means a hell of a to-do over anyone found knitting (stifles another giggle, having never seen
such passion, enjoyment or fear over knitting before), but the actual pricking
of the finger is over in a second and perhaps a missed opportunity for suitably
placed drama.
Anna Pashkova was regal and graceful, making an alluring
Lilac fairy. Having saved the Princess from death by casting a spell so she
would fall into a deep sleep for 100 years, the First Act ended beautifully,
with the Lilac fairy spinning en pointe, between the castle walls and the forest,
as the curtain fell. Unfortunately, the spell was broken when out came some
cast members, including the apparently not-so-sleeping Beauty herself, to take
a bow – a little strange as the characters all appear in the next act. Perhaps this
was to reassure any youngsters in the audience that all was well, should they
not stay awake for the rest of the longish performance.
Act Two opened with the girls in pretty orange tutus and
lovely lighting. During this Act, Prince Desire, fated to awaken the sleeping
Princess, comes across the Lilac fairy, who puts him in a dream, where he sees
Aurora. In the space of about five
seconds, (the time it took to glance at the programme), Aurora had vanished, the
Prince had stormed the castle, fought off the evil witch holding Sleeping Beauty
captive, and Sleeping Beauty was awake, and dancing around the stage again! I
whispered to my fellow reviewers “Did he even kiss her???” “Not that we saw”
was the reply, “But then again, I did blink…”. A bit of a shame that again one
of the highlights in the story was glossed over so quickly.
Nariman Bekzhanov danced Prince Desire and gave the
strongest performance, with vigorous and confident solos. Most of the men, however, need to work on partnering as
they looked tense and awkward. There was almost a sense of relief when turns
and holds were completed. Perhaps the benefit of good seats means one is privy to
any shaking or tension of the dancers in this case, as well as getting the
feeling that at times the dancing seemed intellectualised, rather than natural,
with obvious preparation before executing leaps, turns or lifts.
The girls had lovely expressive faces, connecting with the
audience, but had less chemistry in their partner work. That said, the pas de
trois in Act Two between Aurora, Desire and the Lilac fairy was beautifully
done and quite enchanting.
The whole of the Act Three was entertaining, in
particular the Fairytale characters of Puss in boots. The wedding pas de deux
was truly lovely.
None of these criticisms should worry other than the most
hardened of theatre goers or dancers, and definitely not the plethora of little
ballerinas dolled up for a (late) night, sold-out treat at the theatre.
The performance lacked that attention to detail and
excitement to take it from a nice and pretty traditional ballet to the “wow”
factor. But for those who managed tickets to only two shows with a hefty ticket
price, it was surely a pretty and enjoyable night out.
