Ballet Cymru's Cinderella Second Time Round

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Ballet Cymru Cinderella Waterside Arts Centre, Sale 2 June 2018, 19:30

I expected great things from Wales's national ballet company (see Ballet Cymru 2018 Summer Tour 21 April 2018). I was not disappointed. Cinderella is the best work in Ballet Cymru's repertoire and their Cinderella is (in my humble, northern, rustic opinion) pretty well the best anywhere. But then what do I know? After all, I have only seen Ashton's, Bintley's, Bourne's, Gable's, Hampson's, Nixon's, Ratmansky's, Wheeldon's and probably one or two others that I have forgotten. While I love nearly all those other works, Darius James and Amy Doughty's is the one I love best.

There are four reasons why I love James and Doughty's version so much. The first is that it is very pure.  The libretto sticks closely to Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm's story which is actually quite short and very tight. So, too, is the ballet.  As I noted in Ballet Cymru's Cinderella 15 June 2015:

"This is a very tight production that adapts well to touring with ingenious costume and stage design and lighting. It is dramatic and poignant in parts but also witty. It is exactly the right length. It tells the story in full but does not drag for a second. It makes maximum use of the company's small but very talented troupe of dancers."

That brings me on to the second reason why that ballet is so good which is that James and Doughty give every character his or her moment in the spotlight. Let me give just one example.  In the first act Cas (Cinderella's stepbrother) spins Seren (her stepsister) spectacularly around the stage. Those names lead me to the fourth point. The ballet is very Welsh by which I mean that it is free of frippery and frivolity like a Calvinist chapel but, like the singing that might emanate from such chapel, emotionally very strong.  And most Welsh of all (the fourth reason why I love this ballet) is Jack White's simple, moving, beautiful score.

There have been a few changes to the production since 2015. The company relies heavily on its lighting design to set the scene and there seem to have been some new projections. There seem to be fewer voice overs from the Grimms' text. The ballet opens with the words:

"Dear child, remain pious and good, and then our dear God will always protect you, and I will look down on you from heaven and be near you."

But I can't remember any others which is a shame because I think they were useful cues for the audience in the performance that I saw in Lincoln. I think there may have been some minor changes to the libretto. I remember a chair in which Cinderella's mother died which seems to have disappeared but I do not remember a bike for Prince Madoc or his chum Maldwyn which seems to have added this time.

The biggest change of all, of course, is in the dancers who have joined the company.  Beth Meadway was an enchanting Cinders. Before the show I noted on Facebook that she comes from Hull, the city of Xander Parish and Kevin O'Hare. Xander picked it up and reacted with a "like". Well, all I can say is that they would both have been proud of their fellow codhead.  Another dancer who impressed Gita, in particular, was Eka Mastrangelo. Gita, who has studied Indian dance as well as ballet, noticed how Eka moved. "She must have studied Bharatanatyam" remarked Gita during the interval.  And so it transpired when we met the cast briefly after the show. Eka also confirmed that she worked with her eyes which help to tell the story in Indian dance. Gita also had a fair old chinwag with Alex Hallas who comes from Baildon near Bradford, another city that has produced more top class dancers.  I congratulated Isobel Holland who doubled as Cinderella's dying mum and the bird that looked after her and Maria Teresa Brunello who danced Seren.

It was good also to see again the dancers we already knew: Robbie Moorcroft who danced Prince Madoc, Miguel Fernandes who danced Maldwyn and Dan Morrison who danced Cinderella's father.

Much as I love this ballet there is one aspect that saddens me deeply.  The last time I saw it was a  rehearsal of the second act that the company performed in its studio for the members of the London Ballet Circle (see Ballet Cymru at Home 5 Oct 2015).  Maldwyn was danced by Mandev Sokhi who died a few days later.  Mandev was a beautiful dancer. What was particularly poignant last night is that he had connections with Cheshire. He certainly trained there - possibly at the Hammond.  In Remembering Mandev Sokhi 27 Nov 2015 I wrote:

"Mandev will be remembered tonight far beyond Newport and indeed well beyond Wales for he danced wth Ballet Cymru in every part of the United Kingdom."

I suggested two practical ways of remembering him one of which was to attend an even that has now passed. The other is still available and that is to become a Friend of the company.  Ballet Cymru is a national treasure not just of Wales but of the whole United Kingdom and we owe it to ourselves to help it grow and flourish.

If you you live in Northwest England and missed the show last night you can still catch it tonight in Preston, Otherwise you will have to travel.  But like a restaurant in the Guide Rouge with three rosettes, this show is well worth the journey.

Chantry Dance 2018 Tour

Chantry Dance Company's 'DRACULA - Welcome to D's' (trailer) from Chantry Dance Company on Vimeo.



Four years ago almost to the day Mel Wong and I drove to Lincoln where we took part in Chantry Dance Company's Sandman and Dream Dance.  It was a memorable day for me because it was the first time that I had danced in public and on film and it gave me the chutzpah to put my name down for Northern Ballet Academy's end of year show (see The Time of My Life 26 June 2014). It was also the first time I met Mel.  I remember how our conversation took off like a rocket from the moment she entered my car and continued in that way throughout the day.

In those days the Chantry Dance Company was a very small and a very new operation.  It has grown over the years staging its first full length ballet last year and offering three year diploma courses in ballet and contemporary dance as well as well as associate programmes, workshops, intensives and outreach events through its School of Contemporary and Balletic Arts.  Dominic North, Clemmie Sveaas and Sarah Kundi are now patrons of that school.

Last year, Rae Piper and Paul Chantry of Chantry Dance built up their audience by visiting in advance several of the venues at which they were to perform and giving a talk with demonstrations about an aspect of the show that they were about to dance. I covered their visit to Halifax in More than "Dancing Bananas": Chantry Dance's Demystification of Contemporary Dance 30 June 2017 as well as their show (see The Sandman in Halifax 28 June 2017).

This year Paul Chantry and Rae Piper are creating a new work around Bram Stoker's Dracula.  For some reason or other Dracula attracts choreographers like wasps to a honey pot.  I have seen and reviewed David Nixon's for Northern Ballet (see Dracula 14 Sep 2014) and an extract from Michael Pink and Christoper Gable's which was performed by Ballet Central last year (see Triumphant 1 May 2017). I am also aware of Mark Bruce's Dracula and Ben Stevenson's for Houston Ballet (see the 1987 - 2003 Archive Page on the company's website) and I believe there are many more. It is not a topic that would attract me were I a choreographer as the story gives me the creeps but that is no doubt the creator's intention.  Chantry Dance are performing their new work it in Grantham, Halifax, Worcester, Sale, Stamford, Andover, Lincoln, Horsham and Greenwhich between 21 Sept and 14 Oct 2018.

The company are preparing the ground as they did last year with a talk entitled Day in the Life of a Dancer.   The strap line is "How do they do that" which is a question that Chantry and Piper propose to answer while giving some insight into a dancer's say:

"Learn what it takes to become a dancer, how they maintain fitness, strength and flexibility, and how they rehearse.  Rae and Paul are among the UK’s finest dancers and West End choreographers whose work includes David Walliams’ OLIVIER NOMINATED GANGSTA GRANNY."

They will be at The Waterside in Sale on 27 June and The Victoria in Halifax on 6 July 2018. Tickets are free but must be booked in advance. Chantry and Piper will also visit Stamford, Horsham, Andover and Grantham.

I will mention the talk and the show to anyone who turns up to Powerhouse Ballet's first class at Huddersfield on 26 May 2018.

Ballet Cymru's The Light Princess

The Rev. George McDonald
Author of the Light Princess

Photo William Jeffrey
Source Wikipedia

On 19 May 2017 Ballet Cymru will premiere The Light Princess, a new ballet by Darius James and his beautiful dancers, at the Riverfront Theatre in Newport. According to the company's press release of 19 Jan 2017, The Light Princess is based on the story by George McDonald with a score by Catrin Finch.

Although the story has much in common with The Sleeping Beauty it also presciently appears to have a message for our time on drought and climate change. The author was a Congregationalist minister from Scotland who is said to have mentored Lewis Carroll and inspired many other writers including W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Walter de la Mare, E. Nesbit and Madeleine L'Engle. Finch composed the music for Celtic Concerto which I reviewed in Ballet Cymru in London on 1 Dec 2015.

The company is not releasing many details of its new production. In its press release it says:

"Using elements of circus and outstanding classical choreography the story draws inspiration from Sleeping Beauty, telling the story of a princess afflicted by a constant weightlessness, unable to get her feet on the ground, until she finds a love that brings her down to earth.
Featuring ground breaking video projections and stunningly vibrant costumes The Light Princess will transport you to a world of laughter, beauty and wonder."

Following its premiere in Newport, Ballet Cymru will take the work to Bury St Edmunds, Llanelli, Milford Haven, Stevenage and Newcastle under Lyme.

I am also delighted to say that the company is taking A Midsummer Night's Dream to Preston and Sale as well as other venues in every part of the UK which will please their Northern fans greatly.

I never tire of Dogs Don't Do Ballet

Ballet Black's Dogs Don't Do Ballet seemed so fresh and new yesterday that I was convinced that there must be some new choreography (see As Fresh as Ever: Ballet Black's Dogs Don't Do Ballet in Sale 7 May 2016).

"No new choreography tweeted" Cassa Pancho.

"That's amazing" I thought, I tweeted back

Ah right. Then it is an even better work than I thought because I am still discovering new things about it. https://t.co/GipPZUPa1C

— Terpsichore (@jelterps) May 7, 2016

Cassa replied:

@jelterps but there is a lot of detail that you might miss with only one viewing

— Ballet Black (@BalletBlack) May 7, 2016

She was right, of course. Even though I hadn't intended seeing it twice in the same weekend I returned for a second viewing (fifth all told) at 11:00 today.

I was able to sit much closer to the stage today so I caught some of those details.

There was the toy dalmatian which Bif handed to Anna just before the storm when she dreamt about a real one and in the morning a real one - or as close to real as ballet can conjure - appeared.

I took a closer look at the poster on the wall of Anna's room. "Kanikova" it read and if I am not mistaken it was Kanika Carr dancing with Jacob Wye in the video.

I noticed the intricate choreography of the ballet class with the boys pirouetting while the girls did chaînés.

Though I loved Marie-Astrid's Anna, Sayaka is such a good actor that she brought whole new dimensions to the role. I particularly loved the kiss that Tutu snatched. Her expression changed from delight to embarrassment as it did for him. Tutu and Sayaka are so well matched.

So now Ballet Black's tour to Sale is over and the dancers may be on their way home. It was good to see them here and I look forward to their return next month with their triple bill.

Finally, it was Isabela Corcy's birthday today. I left her a card on behalf of Team Terpsichore - everyone who had ever contributed to Terpsichore namely David, Gita, Joanna, Mel and me. I have been one of her fans ever since I saw her dance the pas de deux from Diana and Actaeon on YouTube, a role that requires enormous grace as well as strength. I am sure that all my readers will join me in wishing her many happy returns of the day.

As Fresh as Ever: Ballet Black's Dogs Don't Do Ballet in Sale

Waterside Arts Centre

Photo Nev1

Source Wikipedia

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Ballet Black, Dogs Don't Do Ballet, Waterside Arts Centre, Sale, 7 May 2016

I was charmed by Christopher Marney's Dogs Don't Do Ballet ever since I saw its first performance in Harlow on 11 Oct 2014 (see Woof 12 Oct 2014). I enjoyed it again when  I saw it twice in Leeds last year (see Not Just a Children's Ballet 19 April 2015 and Le chien mal gardé 21 April 2015), I wondered whether I would still like it as much as I crossed the Pennines on the way to the theatre.

The answer was an emphatic "yes". It was as fresh as ever. I am not sure whether that is because of new choreography or because I noticed things that I had missed before. It may be because of cast changes since I had last seen the show. Sayaka Ichikawa was a delightful Anna and Mthuthuzeli November brought his panache and style to the ballet. While I liked Marie-Astrid Mence and Christopher Renfurm well enough it is always good to see another interpretation.

Loosely based on Anna Kemp's children's story, the ballet is about a ballet mad little girl called Anna and her pet dog Bif danced by Cira Robinson. Anyone who has ever kept a dog will be amazed by Robinson's performance because she has every canine mannerism down to a tee.  Anna takes her dog to ballet class kept by the slightly ridiculous Miss Polly. Bif wants to join in the class and after a few faltering steps at the barre proves to be rather good at it. Her mistress encourages that interest and during the night a storm breaks out. As it is whining and shaking Anna comforts the dog and they both watch a scene from The Nutcracker. They fall asleep and Bif dreams of dancing a pas de deux with a handsome dalmatian. The next day the children meet in the park with their dogs where they come across their teacher fast asleep with a hip flask by her side. There is a hilarious scene where they make fun of her. Miss Polly wakes up suddenly by the dogs licking her face, In the last scene Anna's father produces two tickets to the ballet. The dog wants to come but. of course, dogs are not allowed.  Nevertheless Bif gets into the auditorium somehow which is just as well for when Madame Kanikova jams her head in a French horn Bif is ready to jump on stage and dance the principal role.

It may be my imagination but I think there has been some new choreography to show Bif's progress at ballet. When the children do the centre exercises in front of the mirror she shows that she can perform the adagio quite as well as any of them. The audience is treated to two delightful duets between Bif and the dalmatian and Bif with the male principal.

If it was Marney's intention to inspire it worked.  As I left the theatre one small child asked her mother when she could start ballet.  Alarmingly another, who could not be aged more than 7, was on pointe in trainers. Several other kids were practising port de bras.  

As a Mancunian it was good to see one of my favourite companies in my native city. Well, almost, for I was born in Didsbury just the other side of the Mersey. They are dancing again at the Waterside Arts Centre tomorrow at 11:00 and 14:00 and if you can get to see them you should. They are also coming back to our metropolis on the 19 June to dance their triple bill which David Murley reviewed at The Lowry.