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Performances, movies and book reviews …Archive for Cinderella
Cinderella on Ice
I wasn’t sure what to expect, I had heard that it was not the classical story, but I enjoyed Swan Lake on Ice, so I thought that I would give the Imperial Ice Stars another go.
Warning: this review has plot details!
The Cinderella story has definitely been upgraded. The opening sequence introduces Cinderella beside her dead mother and also introduces her father. The rest of first 15 minutes were a little bit confusing, still I worked my way through it.
Cinderalla instead of being reduced to being a scullery maid in the family kitchen is actually in the corp de ballet of a company of which her stepsisters are principal dancers - not very good ones at that. So, when on opening night of Swan Lake, one of them falls and hurts herself, Cinderella’s talent is finally recognised and she thrust into the main part! This brings her to the attention of the ‘Prince’ character - who has to organise a ball to meet her. Cinderella is so mobbed by well wishers at the post performance party that her doesn’t actually get to meet her!! The rest of the story is pretty much as the classic version, even though the setting is more Regency than Queen Anne. The stepmother ended up as a mixture of ballet-mum and Mrs Collins (as in Pride and Prejudice).
The production went out of its way to emphasis the importance of midnight. I thought that this was the most innovative aspect of the production. Cast members dressed up as the numbers in a clock face - this allowed the use modern-dance choreography and costumes without it being out of place with the Regency period. Full marks for using a tissu performer to be the clock hands in one of these sequences.
The stepsisters lost some of their significance in the re-worked story, they are just there to give smore credence to the step-mother character - if cinderella is to be discriminated against, there must be someone(s) who are favoured unfairly ahead of her . The ‘prince’ character is slightly diminished - he is now the Lord Mayor’s son (Andrei Penkine). By not making him royalty, some of the shine goes off the character. The contribution to the story made by the fairy godmother character increases; there is almost a sense of a dual between the fairy godmother and the step-mother.
There are three main charaters: Cinderella (Olga Sharutenko), her father (Vadim Yarkov) and her stepmother (Olena Pyatash). There is a bit of a love triangle: the father for both of them, each for him, and Cinderella also seeks acceptance from her stepmother.
The ice skating is brilliant: energetic, but precise. The stage/ice is quite crowded with skaters and props - there is no room for error. There are one handed carries - with the female partner held above the man’s head with a straight arm !
The Ice Stars have a managed curtain call: at the end of the performance, two of the cast gets the crowd clapping madly and then cast members take turns doing tricks. This slightly artifical segment is well worth it, as the cast does spectacular tricks without having to worry about the story telling ! Just natural joy in having mastered difficult tricks.
0.3
Cinderella - RNZB September 2007
I went to the opening night, Friday the 31 of August, of the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s new production of Cinderella. This is a new work from choreographer Christopher Hampson.
The ballet is in 3 Acts, and opens with a funeral. Actually, the funeral takes place before the beginning of Act I - like the opening scenes in a modern movie, where there is an attention grabbing sequence before the opening credits. The funeral sets the scene and mood for Act I, and takes place behind a black muslin curtain. Anyone who is not familiar with the Cinderella story is left in no doubt that she is an orphan, about to be cast into an uncertain future. Act I is dark and the step-mother and step-sisters cruel and nasty to Cinderella.
Act II takes place at the ball, and here we see the Prince in search of a soul mate. Even at the ball, surrounded by beautiful women - many invited there to meet him - he seems alone. Just when you think the ball is over and the ballet is going to take an unexpected direction, Cinderella appears. the prince comes to life and the rest is history.
Act III is also introduced by a tableau - this time by the corp of Royal shoemakers trying to duplicate the slipper left behind by Cinderella - taking place infront of the curtain. They fail and the Prince has to use the real one on his search for the women who will fit the shoe. The curtain rises and the Prince and his companions search for the Prince. Of course, the Prince finds Cinderella and all is well. One of the step-sisters even ends up with one of the Prince’s companions!
I have never been to a pantomime, but having seen the step-sisters, I have some feel for what a pantomime might be like. I am not saying that the ballet went too far, though some may say it did. For me, the portrayal was just right, it introduced a lighter note to some very dark material. In fact the dancing and acting of Alessia Lugoboni threatened to steal the show - her portrayal of the chirpy airhead step-sister gained this character the sympathy of the audience.
For me the choice of Yu Takayama, Qi Huan and Vivencio Samblaceno as Cinderella, the Prince and the Father, had what must have been an unexpected result. The dark elements were all danced by European looking dancers and the ‘good’ elements of the ballet were played by Asian looking dancers. This provided a visual contrast. There was another more subtle contrast: the Prince and Cinderella danced traditional ballet steps; whereas the step-sisters danced a very character steps. The result was to emphasis the gulf between the dark and the light elements at work. At times it was almost as if there were two ballets going on at once - the new characterisation around the step-sisters and the ball, interleaved with the very traditional stylized Prince and Cinderella. I would really like to see this production on another night with different dancers in the roles of the Prince and Cinderella - to see and experience what it would be like.
I really enjoyed this production: the re-worked story offered those who were familiar with the basic story-line something to hang out for; the costumes, sets and lighting very nice and the dancing was great. The step-sisters were larger than life and you could sense the love-hate relationship building up with the audience. The Prince and Cinderella were picture perfect - to my man-in-the-street-eye they exhibited strong tradition technique: Yu Takayama was light and her split-leaps were effortless and level while, Qi Huan’s fouettes pinpoint.
Some other impressions: guys with wings and a roses sub-theme. Three of the characters who supplied Cinderella with the where withall to get to the ball are insects with wings ! I have not seen men in parts with wings - this is generally reserved for female dancers. The recurring use of the rose motif was also very clever: Cinderella plants a rose on her mother’s grave - which turns into a giant rose bush; under which she is given her ball gown; of a red rose motif as the full moon 3 days after a partial eclipse that produced a ‘blood moon’; and the vital silver rose.
0.3
This 
ballet performance inspired me to start this blog, and write about art and culture (and maybe other things).
