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Ballet Cymru Rome a Juliet 31 May 2019 Riverfront Theatre, Newport

This is the third time I have seen Darius James and Amy Doughty's Romeo a Juliet and each time I see it I have found something new. Last night I saw two exceptional talents: Danila Marzilli, one of the finalists in the ballet category of the BBC Young Dancer of 2019, for the first time; and Beau Dillen whom I had seen two months earlier in Made in Wales. Marzilli danced Juliet in the second professional performance of her life (the first being the previous night) and Dillen the nurse, standing in for Krystal Lowe at the very last moment.

To give a young dancer straight out of ballet school the leading role is an incredibly risky thing to do both for the dancer and the company. James and Doughty did that once before with Gwenllian Davies the last time I saw Romeo a Juliet and it worked spectacularly well (see A Romeo and Juliet for Our Times 7 Nov 2016). It also worked last night with Mazilli. Mazilli is very accomplished technically but she can also act. The despair in the bedroom was palpable after Romeo had taken flight and her parents, grief-stricken with the loss of Tybalt, were piling on the pressure for her to marry Paris. So, too, was the fear as she considered whether to take Friar Larence's potion.  So, also, was the agony of finding Romeo's body in the Capulet family grave.  These and all the other thoughts and feelings fleeting through young Juliet's consciousness were communicated with considerable eloquence.

In most versions of Rome and Juliet and, of course, the play the nurse is much older than Juliet and her social inferior.  In James and Doughty she is a confidante.  In previous performances by this company, she has been called Cerys.  In last night's show, she was referred to simply as "Juliet's friend." As such, she adds a dynamic to the narrative that actually enhances Shakespeare.  She recognizes Romeo at her parents' ball and tries to lead Juliet away.  She tries to intercede with Juliet as she rejects Paris. It is she who finds Juliet stone cold the morning of her wedding. This is a role that requires maturity and authority which is why it is usually performed by one of the company's most experienced dancers. Dillen is the company's apprentice yet she filled that role magnificently.

Romeo was danced by Andrea Maria Battagia who performed that role the last time I saw the ballet.  He is everything a male lead should be.  A virtuoso who thrills with his solos but nevertheless displays his ballerina like the setting of a precious jewel so that she dazzles.  I think we owe a lot to Battagia for the way he partnered Mazilli last night, much as he did with Davies in 2016. Battagia can also act.  For the first time ever I saw Romeo as a flawed hero. Possibly because he despatched Tybalt and Paris with plebian knives rather than gentlemen's swords.  A whiff of brexit Britain rather than renaissance Verona.

That brings me on to another quality of James and Doughty's work. It is set in our time and our country.  The first time I saw the work I noted Tybalt's dragon tattoo and the substitution of Cerys as a confidante of Juliet in place of the nurse (see They're not from Chigwell - they're from a small Welsh Town called Newport 14 May 2013).  Instead of a duke, the brawl between the Capulets and the Montagues is broken up by the flashing lights and shadowy figures of the Gwent Constabulary. The knifings of Mercutio and Tybalt took place not in the Piazza of Verona but underneath the flyover of the exit lane from the bridge over the Usk.   I recognized the setting in the projections against the backdrop. Again there were the flashing lights of the Heddlu.

Talking of Tybalt it is always a delight to watch Robbie Moorcroft swagger on stage. Our hearts go out for Miguel Fernandes as Mercutio, the cub of the Montague pack with something to prove. Romeo tried to hold him back but too late.  He takes on the wily Tybalt who knifes him.  His bravado after his first wound is one of the most heart-rending scenes of classical dance. The second knifing turns Romeo and Juliet from a saccharine romance into drama. Romeo has to get involved.  He then has to go on the run. There is no way this story could end otherwise than badly.

Lord and Lady Capulet danced by two of my favourite dancers, Alex Hallas and Beth Meadway, added yet another quality to the work. Other productions show a tearful, vengeful Lady Capulet but her husband's role is usually minor.  Not in James and Doughty's work. They are sleek, powerful, authoritarian - and Northern. It just so happens they are both from Yorkshire. I could almost hear them:

"Now listen up, our kid. There's nowt wrong with Paris. You could do a lot worse than wed him. I know he's not much to look at but he's got brass and he's not wanted by the law. Not like that Romeo Montague. Ooh, I do hope they catch him, lock him up and throw away the key. How could you even look at him after what he did to Tybalt?"

And with her friend joining in, is it any wonder that Juliet buried her face in a pillow before quaffing Friar Lawrence's potion and eventually killing herself?

Everyone in this show danced well.  Joshua Feist was a perfect Paris, another recent recruit whose career I shall follow with interest. Isobel Holland was an impressive Friar Lawrence. Much closer to Shakespeare than the manipulative cleric in Jean-Christophe Maillot's version of the ballet. Maria Teresa Brunello was a convincing Benvolio.  Not easy to dance a role of the opposite gender.  Holland and Brunello are to be congratulated for that alone.   Especially as there are some in ballet who would not countenance it.   I recently met a teacher and choreographer who was scandalized by my learning to dance the bronze idol in an adult ballet intensive.

James and Doughty have big plans for their company.  They are touring China soon where I am sure they will be admired.   They hope to employ their dancers on full-term rather than short-term contracts.  Ballet Cymru reminds me a lot of Scottish Ballet when they first moved to Glasgow 50 years ago.

Like Scotland in the 1970s, Wales is changing fast.  I sense a growing sense of nationhood.  The National Assembly now makes primary legislation.  The Supreme Court already sits in Cardiff and there are calls even from Unionists for a separate Welsh court system.   Until a few years ago the economy of the North was largely rural and that of the South was not unlike that of the American rust belt.  The economy is changing rapidly into one that is knowledge-based.   I see signs of that transformation every time I visit M-Sparc, Aber Innovation or the Pontio Arts and Innovation Centre.  The entrepreneurs, innovators and creative folk who are driving that change need the arts and expect the best.  They demand world-class dance and Ballet Cymru is delivering it to them.

More Good News from Wales: Swansea Students' Show

Swansea Grand Theatre

Photo Fanrailuk
Source Wikipedia

Copyright waived by the author

Yesterday I mentioned that the Welsh composer Jack White who has written the scores of Cinderella and Stuck in the Mud for Ballet Cymru and has recently been commissioned to write a score for the National Dance Company of Wales has published a recording of Cinderella on his website and very reasonably invited the public to contribute what they can for licences to download and play his work. Today I bring more good news from the principality, My fellow adult ballet student, Sophia Komninou is taking part in a show at Swansea Grand Theatre on 18 July and she has kindly invited me to watch it. As Swansea is the gateway to the Gower Peninsula which has some of the finest coastline and countryside in Europe if not the world I will be there if I possibly can.

The show will be presented by the Irenie Rogers Classical Ballet Academy or Ballet Academy Swansea for short. According to Sophia, the show will include the greater part of act 2 of Giselle, the Dance of the flowers from The Nutcracker and various other pieces from the adult ballet and younger students. There are videos of previous performances on the Academy's Facebook page and I think you will agree that the standard is pretty high. I am particularly impressed with the scenes from La Bayadere which, as it happens, Sophia and I studied together in KNT;s intensive from Jane Tucker Manchester last summer (see La Bayadere Intensive Day 3: No Snakes 17 Aug 2016).

Sophia describes herself on twitter as a "feminist, amateur ballet dancer and ballet geek, foodie, crafter and curious". Dance, crafting and food are only her spare time activities by the way. She is primarily an interdisciplinary researcher with a background in nutrition and dietetics with a specialization in obesity and weight management.who teaches infant and chi;d public health at Swansea University.

Over the next few days I hope to find out more about adult dance classes in Swansea in order to compile a directory of such classes in Wales. I already know that Krystal Lowe teaches an adult ballet class at Ballet Cymru's premises at Rogerstone near Newport between 18:00 and 19:30 on Mondays (see Ballet Classes for Adult Beginners on the Ballet Cymru website) and that Louise Lloyd gives classes between 18:15 and 18:30 on Tuesdays at the Dance House in the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff (see the Adult Beginners' Ballet page of the National Dance Company's website).  As I get to hear of more classes I will publish them in the blog.

Ballet Cymru's Big Give Appeal

Ballet Cymru

(c) 2015 Gita Mistry: all rights reserved

I have already asked you to dig deep for English National Ballet's Dance for Parkinson in ENB's Big Give to Dance for Parkinson's 25 Nov 2016 and Birmingham Royal Ballet to stage La Bayadere in A Birmingham Bayadere 26 Nov 2016 . I urge you to support those causes once again. I also ask you to add Balletboyz Parkinson's can dance. But there is one other appeal I should like you to consider.  It is smaller than the others but no less deserving.

Ballet Cymru, some of the sweetest people I know in dance, hope to raise £1,000 in the Big Give for a new roof with solar panels. They need it because their existing roof is beginning to leak in several places putting props and costumes at risk. Responsibly they also want to reduce their carbon footprint.  They have already arranged £1,000 match funding and another £1,000 from the public is not too much to ask - is it?

We are very lucky in this country to have strong regional companies in Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds and Newport as well as world class companies like the Royal Ballet and ENB and we must cherish them all.

Ballet Cymru's Summer Tour

Darius James with Gwenllian Davies and Miguel Fernandes

Photo Gita Mistry
(c) 2016 Gita Mistry, all rights reserved

Ballet Cynru, Roald Dahl's Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs, Riverfront Theatre, Newport 21 May 2016

Last night I attended the opening of Ballet Cymru's summer tour at the company's home theatre in Newport. The works which they are taking on tour are revivals of Roald Dahl's  Little Red Riding Hood & The Three Little Pigs to celebrate the centenary of the writer's birth and Romeo a Juliet to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death.  Both ballets were created by Darius James and Amy Doughty whose work I admire very much indeed. Their Cinderella was outstanding. It was so good that it was my ballet of the year and their Tir was my number two (see Highlights of 2015 29 Dec 2915).

The work which the company performed last night was Lwhich I previewed in Hard not to have Favourites ...... Ballet Cymru's Little Red Riding Hood rides again 28 April 2016). These are dance dramas based on two of Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes which are connected by the appearance of Little Red Riding Hood as wolf slayer in both works. Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf are act 1 and The Three Little Pigs are act 2. The ballet is very short which makes it suitable for young children of whom there were quite a few in the audience last night but those stories have an ironic twist epitomized by the line "Ah, Piglet, you must never trust Young ladies from the upper crust" which appeals to adults.

The central figure in the show (or as Gita would say "person of the match") was Little Red Riding Hood danced last night by Lydia Arnoux who displayed her usual virtuosity with charm and humour but she was supported strongly by Mark Griffiths who told the story and also by Andrea Battagia who danced the wolf and Robbie Moorcroft who danced the dissolute alcoholic grandma in act 1. Yesterday was an opportunity to see Ballet Cymru's latest recruits two of whom appear with Darius James in the photo above. Gwenllian Davies, who is actually Welsh, danced the virtuous grandmother yesterday. Her companion, Miguel Fernandes, was part of a cow in act 1 and a pig in act 2. Dylan Waddell was the other half of the cow. Anna Pujol was a pig in both acts. They all performed well as did the whole cast.

The recruitment of four new dancers with excellent credentials attests to the increasing strength and self confidence of the company. It is still relatively small in numbers but not in ambition for it will perform Little Red Riding Hood and the Three Little Pigs to the accompaniment of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in the massive Millennium Centre in Cardiff on 4 Dec 2016. That will be a great day and a coming of age for a great little company. Wherever you are in the country, nay Europe or indeed the world, it will be worth a trip to Cardiff for it will be a day to remember.

"The Pride of Newport and the Pride of Wales"

Ballet Cymru and Guests, Riverfront Theatre, Newport 6 Nov 2015

Author Gita Mistry

(c) 2015 Gita Mistry: all rights reserved

Ballet Cymru, TIR, Riverfront Theatre, 6 Nov 2015

Towards the end of her performance Cerys Matthews described Ballet Cymru as "the pride of Newport" and a little bit later as "the pride of Wales". The auditorium exploded and rightly so for indeed they are at least that.  Friday night was one of those very rare times in the theatre when something special happens. Something like the moment when Igone de Jongh and Casey Herd stepped on stage to dance Voorbij Gegaan which Rudi van Dantzig had created for Alexandra Radius and Han Ebelaar immediately after the presentation of the Alexandra Radius prize (see The best evening I have ever spent at the ballet 13 Sept 2015.) Or when Hans van Manen took a bow at the Stadsshouwburg at the Junior Company's opening performance (see The Junior Company of the Dutch National Ballet - Stadsshouwburg Amsterdam 24 Nov 2013 25 Nov 2013). Or when Northern Ballet danced A Midsummer Night's Dream  at the West Yorkshire Playhouse on 14 Sept 2013 (see Realizing Another Dream 15 Sept 2013). Or indeed Sir Frederick Ashton's retirement gala on 24 July 1970.

There were many reasons why Friday's performance was special.  The company was at home. In the magnificent Riverfront Theatre in its home town. The company's artistic director, Darius James, is a Newport man and his pride in his city and company is palpable. I watched Darius in the intervals as he greeted well wishers. There is real affection for James and his company in Newport very much as I found in Birmingham for Bintley and his company, or in Glasgow for Scottish Ballet or in Amsterdam for the Dutch National Ballet. Another reason is that the company is like a family - a family still in shock and mourning one of its finest dancers (see Mandev Sokhi 10 Oct 2015). Mandev was never far from our thoughts but  in Marc Brew's Traces Implanted and Matthews's setting of the Rev Eli Jenkins's prayer from Under Milk Wood it was as though he was still centre stage. Yet another reason which Friday was special is that the dancers seemed to be inspired. I have never seen them dance so well. I have rarely seen any company dance as well.

The evening was a triple bill consisting of Catrin Finch's Celtic Concerto. Traces Implanted and Cerys Matthews's TIR. As I got hopelessly lost in the one way system after encountering the notoriously, stroppy taxi driver who charges £50 if you're sick in the back seat in Newport State of Mind  which we were assured by our hotel reception we needed for the "enormous distance" (for a snail) between the Newport Travelodge and the Riverfront Theatre, we missed Celtic Concerto.  But we were in time for Traces Implanted which impressed me even more than Brew's other works and, of course, Matthews's glorious TIR. We also have the perfect excuse to see the triple bill again in another venue.

On his website Brew explains that "Traces Implanted explores the imprints and memories made and the traces left behind".  Gita tells me that she discussed that theme with Brew when she met him after the show. Gita confirmed that the subject matter is death and bereavement, something that we don't wish to mention about every day even though we are confronted with that reality constantly. The dancers must have found it particularly difficult as they had recently been bereaved themselves. But as Brew added, he doesn't always want to create conventional balletic beauty. Although there was beauty in this piece - particularly in the final duet with almost ethereal figures in the soft and subtle lighting - it was a compelling but not a comfortable work to watch.

TIR was quite a different work. Matthews has a lovely voice which is admired everywhere in the UK but when she sings in Welsh to a Welsh audience she is adored. Darius James and Amy Doughty have created dances for some of her best known works. Works that I was relieved to find are almost as well known on this side of Offa's Dyke as on the other. I caught myself clapping to Sospan Fach and rooting for a tissue for Myfanwy. Half concert, half ballet it was a thrilling experience. The company were joined by Daisuke Miura and Emily Pimm-Edwards who had delighted us in Romeo a Juliet (see They're not from Chigwell - they're from a small Welsh Town called Newport 14 May 2013) and Suzy Birchwood who had amazed us in Llandudno (see An Explosion of Joy 21 Sept 2014).

After the show Gita and I were invited to meet the dancers and creative team over drinks and canapés. It was a privilege to shake their hands again - particularly Krystal Lowe's who never fails to move me. I got to meet Jack White the gifted young composer of Cinderella and Stuck in the Mud and many of the the creative and technical team who have worked with the company  though sadly not Matthews on this occasion. Still, I have seen her perform live for the first time and that was more than enough.

Ballet Cymru's Cinderella

Photo: Sleepy Robot
(c) 2015 Ballet Cymru, All rights reserved
Reproduced with kind permission of 

I have seen a lot of versions of Cinderella over the years: Ashton's of course for the Royal Ballet but also Matthew Bourne's set in wartime London, Nixon's for Northern Ballet and a version danced by the Bristol Russian Youth Ballet Company which starred Elena Glurdjidze (see Good Show - Bristol Russians' Cinderella in Stockport 19 Feb 2014), Until yesterday evening I liked Ashton's version best but now I think I prefer Darius James and Amy Doughty's for Ballet Cymru. Perhaps I will change my mind again when I see Christopher Wheeldon's for the Dutch National Ballet at the Coliseum on 11 July 2015 as it looks lovely in the YouTube trailer, but for now this Welsh Cinderella is my favourite.

Ballet Cymru's Cinderella is choreographed by Darius James and Amy Doughty to a new score by Jack White. It is a co-production with the Riverfront Theatre in Newport in association with Citrus Arts. 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.

In the inset of the programme someone has written in English and Welsh:

"We are a ballet company who like to do things a bit differently. We enjoy finding new ways to make what we do exciting, innovative and relevant."

This production was certainly innovative but it was also firmly based on the work of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. The ballet opened with a voice over reading the words of Cinderella's dying mother (Krystal Lowe) as she was tended by her daughter (Allegra Vianello):

 "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."

James made a few modifications to the story. He gave Cinderella a gawky, half witted step brother called Cas (Robbie Moorcroft) as well as a step sister called Seren (Lydia Arnoux) and as you will have probably guessed from the names of the step children he rooted his ballet in Wales. But then why not? The brothers Grimm did not mention a location or give names to their characters and Wales has no shortage of forests lakes, mountains, castles and even princes who marry commoners in real life. Overall, James took far fewer liberties with his literary source than did Bourne, Nixon settling his ballet in pre-revolutionary Russia, Ashton or indeed the traditional British pantomime.

The ballet proceeds as in the fairy tale with the marriage of the well meaning but ineffectual father (Andrea Battagia) to the mean and jealous step mother, Aerona (Natalie Debono). The family receives an invitation to Prince Madoc's ball. Incidentally, there really was a Prince Madoc in Welsh history who gave his name to the towns of Tremadoc and Portmadoc in Carnarvonshire (now part of the modern county of Gwynedd) and who is said to have discovered America several centuries before Columbus (see the entry in Wikipedia). Cinderella wants to go but her step mother gives her the Herculean labour of picking up within the hour a bowl of lentils which she peevishly scatters on the stage. As in the story, the birds come to her rescue. A voice over reads the rhyme:

"The good ones go into the pot,
The bad ones go into your crop."

They swoop and pick up the grains within the hour as stipulated by Aerona.

Of course, that is still not good enough for the step mother who forbids Cinderella from attending the ball on the pretext that she can't dance and has nothing to wear; but Cinderalla's mother now in the form of a bird presents her with a beautiful ball gown which it plucks from a tree by her mother's grave and off she goes. You may have noticed, gentle reader, the absence of a fairy godmother and a Cinders mobile morphed from a pumpkin drawn by mice in James's ballet but you won't find any of that in the Grimms' story either.

The family arrive at the reception by their separate ways and the stepmother and her daughter make a beeline for the Prince. He and his friends Maldwyn (Mandev Sokhi) and Math (Tim Hill) try to keep out of their way. At one point they comically crouch behind the furniture in an attempt to conceal themselves. But then the Prince spots Cinderella whom he had previously seen at her mother's graveside. He falls for her and they dance all night until she has to make her getaway losing her pointe shoe in her flight.

The prince and his entourage tour the town inviting the girls of the parish to try on the pointe shoe. Eventually, they reach Cinderella's house and her step sister tries on the shoe. Remarkably (as Arnoux is a very petite dancer) the shoe is too big so her brother sets about her with a meat cleaver to perform foot surgery without anaesthetic. There are squeals and squawks of pan from Arnoux but to no avail. The voice over, representing the birds, reads:

"Rook di goo, rook di goo!
There's blood in the shoe.
The shoe is too tight,
This bride is not right!"

Poor Seren hobbles about with a red ribbon representing a stream of blood.  Aerona then forces Cas into drag and he emerges with a crinoline frame rather like the ones that Ruth Brill uses in her ballet Matryoshka (see Birmingham Royal Ballet in High Wycombe 31 May 2015). He tries on the pointe shoe but he has no more luck than his sister despite also undergoing agonizing foot surgery.

Cinderella enters and produces the other shoe from under a cushion on the sofa. She tries on the lost shoe and of course it fits. Prince Madoc claims his bride. The birds chase Aerona and Cas away but perhaps it is not all bad news for the step family because the closing scene shows Seren dancing happily with Math.

This was an enchanting ballet and I could quite happily have sat through it all again there and then had that been possible. I loved White's score - maybe not quite as much as Prokofiev's - but then it fitted the ballet like a glove. An arranger or even a musicologist would have had to have taken a meat cleaver to Prokofiev and the result might have been no more satisfactory than the operation on the feet of Cas and Seren. I also loved Steve Denton's designs, particularly Aerona's headdress, which suggested horns as well as vulgarity in millinery. Denton made Seren look really plain which is an achievement because Arnoux is actually a very attractive young woman when not in costume. I loved Chris Illingworth's lighting design and the ingenious use of a projector to set the scene which is ideal for touring.  But most of all I loved the choreography and the dancing which had some unusual features like a remarkable three person lift and turn executed by the step family and some ape like acrobatics by Cas and Seren. There were great performances by all, particularly Lowe, who transformed herself convincingly from a dying woman into an angry bird.

I discussed the choreography with Darius James whom I met in the interval. He told me that the remarkable three person lift and turn had been a circus trick devised by Citrus. He also said that the cast rotates and that the different dancers interpret the roles quite differently. That is, of course, what one would expect but I would love to see it for myself. If I can, I will try to catch this production with a different cast somewhere else on its tour.

Ballet Cymru is a very special company. It is, of course, a national ballet company and while it is nothing like as big as English National Ballet or Scottish Ballet I don't think anyone could argue that it is not in its own way just as good. It does a lot of things that other companies don't do such as its collaboration with Gloucestershire Dance which produced an Explosion of Joy in Llandudno on 21 Sept 2014. Much of the credit for that triumph must go to the choreographer Marc Brew whom I featured in Special Brew on 28 April 2015. As I said in that feature and in my review of his Exalt Brew is now working with Ballet Cymru and I see from the programme that he has been appointed Associate Artistic Director. In our conversation James told me that the company will dance a new work by Brew together with TIR and Celtic Concerto in Newport, Llandudno and London later in the year. Even though we won't see the wonderful Cerys Matthews as she will be in Chubut to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the voyage of the Mimosa to Patagonia (see Y Wladfa in Wikipedia)  I can't wait to see it.

Ballet Cyrmu is a great national treasure not just for the principality but for the whole United Kingdom which is no doubt why the London Ballet Circle seem to pay it special attention despite their metropolitan provenance. If you get the chance to see a performance by this company then go. It is a good example of what a small touring company can do and provides an excellent model for others.

Ballet Cymru's Cinderella

Two of my personal highlights of last year were Ballet Cymyru's performances of Beauty and the Beast at Lincoln and Stuck in the Mud in Llandudno. They are a lovely company with some lovely dancers. I am a particular fan of Krystal Lowe who like me spent part of her education in Los Angeles and also of Mandev Solkhi who was a magnificent beast in Lincoln last year.  I snapped both of them on the streets of Llandudno in September.

On 8 May 2015 Ballet Cymru are premièring a brand new version of Cinderella at the Riverfront Theatre in Newport. Newport was sent up terribly by the Jay Z Spoof Newport A state of Mind and also by the local response You're not from Newport but it is actually quite a pleasant place.  Just a few minutes drive from the centre is Caerleon Roman fortress and baths, one of the most important archaeological sites in Britain. It is also the southern end of the magnificent Wye Valley which is an area of outstanding natural beauty.  It has a Norman Castle though there is not much left of it and, of course, the UK Intellectual Property Office which is how I happen to know the place so well.

Ballet Cymru has commissioned its own score from Jack White who wrote the music for Stuck in the Mud. The ballet is choreographed by Darius James and Amy Doughty. The sets and costumes have been designed by Steve Denton. After its opening in Newport the show will tour England and Wales with one performance in Scotland at Ayr

Ballet Cymru has particularly connections with the London Ballet Circle. Darius James is one of the Vice Presidents. The Circle has organized at least one visit to Newport and encourages its members to attend its performances in London.

For grown ups who haven't lost touch with their childhoods - Ballet Cymru's Beauty & The Beast

 Photo: Janire Najeera

A little bit of Welsh indulgence

On Sunday 22nd June I embarked on a last minute trip to Lincoln with Jane to see the beautiful Ballet Cymru perform their take on the 'Beauty & The Beast' fable. The company themselves are based just 45 minutes away from my hometown of Bridgend, in a new home set in an unassuming building in an industrial estate in Newport, Gwent. 

Yes, this Newport:

(I can't believe that Ballet Cymru didn't get a mention in this little ditty!)

Anyway, to say that I am proud of this small touring classical ballet company with exceptionally high standards goes without saying! Although currently lacking any Welsh dancers, Artistic Director Darius James is a Newport boy born and bred, and for this evocative production a new score was commissioned from Cardiff University graduate David Westcott. So, despite being far away from my hometown in a modern Performing Arts Centre in the city of Lincoln I still got to see the the pinnacle of Welsh ballet! Ballet Cymru are very much an ensemble, from my brief communications with Assistant Artistic Director Amy Doughty and from observing the dancers and technical staff you get the feeling that they are all collaborating and sharing their skills and talents to make their company a success. They have real heart and soul, and this was no better shown than in their performance.

On with the show...
With the opening strains of Westcott's haunting score cascading through our ears the curtains opened to the full dance company on stage, introducing us to and inviting us in to watch their interpretation of Jean Cocteau’sublime La Belle et la Bête. And invite us in they did! The combination of James' and Doughty's swooping choreography and the rustic screen projections and crisp lighting design gave an intimate feel to the performance, as if we were watching a travelling show of unique, esoteric beings who appear briefly overnight only to disappear the next morning. And all of this was magically pulled together by the bewitching, elegant and dramatic Ballet Cymru dancers.

We're all familiar with the tale, and Cocteau's 'Beauty' is filled with themes of friendship, family, romance and redemption. I believe that Ballet Cymru really managed to convey these themes and ideas within their piece. Nicolas Capelle gave a truly heart-breaking performance as Beauty's father, who upon learning of his son's (Andrea Battaggia) selfishness and greed embarked on a desperate journey to the Beast's castle. At times his desperation made me feel that this journey was more of a suicide mission, as if he couldn't face the shame of returning home empty-handed to a family, who without the presence of a matriarch placed high demands and expectations upon him. After battling through the bewitched Castle (brilliantly brought to life by members of the company) he sights a single red rose and with that remembers his youngest daughter and his promise to her, effectively bringing him back to life. It wasn't the last time that Ballet Cymru's Beauty would have this effect on the men in her life, either.

A cacophony of noise announced the arrival of the Beast onto the stage, and it was a Beast unlike any I had ever seen before. Brilliantly brought to life by Mandev Sokhi (who managed to convey a sense of pathos despite his alien form), this creature was literally skin and bone. I applaud Ballet Cymru for creating a truly physically repellent character that was at times reminiscent of Max Shreck's Count Orlok and Harrison Birtwistle's Minotaur. Sokhi's Beast carried a great burden, shaking, stumbling and contorting his way across the stage during the introductory scenes before re-coiling into an insectoid like form when faced with the purity and honesty of Lydia Arnoux's Beauty. As a fellow dancer I couldn't help but admire Sokhi's stamina and dance talent when, after his unveiling as a handsome prince, he bounded into a serious of bravura steps and pas de deux. This was no mean feat after bending over double for 75% of the production, especially when partnering the petite Arnoux.

Unfortunately, although I was incredibly 'taken' with Capelle, Sokhi and the exceptional Krystal Lowe (who as well as dancing the 'clever sister' role made good use of her strength, fluidity and footwork as part of the Beast's living castle) I wasn't quite as enamoured of Arnoux's Beauty as I needed to be. I like spacious dancers who extend and reach through movement, and Arnoux's petite frame meant that at times the gorgeous choreography was a bit lost on her. And her childlike appearance also brought to mind a sullen Shirley Temple, which made the subsequent romantic duets with a very dashing Daniel Morrison as Avenant a little uncomfortable to watch. I suppose I would also say that I was a little disappointed by the generic casting of a blonde, petite, cherubic dancer as Beauty. I was craving something a little less obvious than that, and at times I found myself imagining what Lowe would be like as Beauty instead. There's no doubt that Arnoux is a very talented dancer and actress, however, and her stage presence and dramatic ability more than made up for her lack of stature amongst some of the ensemble pieces with her taller peers. I look forward to seeing her perform other roles, her lightness and quick feet would make her an ideal Puck if Ballet Cymru would re-cast their version of '...Dream'!

Photographer: Sian Trenberth

Arnoux & Sokhi in rehearsals 

So without giving any more of the ending away, although I'm sure readers will guess that they all lived happily ever after, it just leaves me to say rhydw'yn hoffi Ballet Cymru! I'd also like to give a special mention to Robbie Moorcroft, who brought a sense of vivaciousness and genuine friendship to his performance as friend and companion to Beauty's siblings (he was also kind enough to indulge in a little chat with me after the show!).

Train with the company
Although Ballet Cymru's website (www.welshballet.co.uk) is still under development they are currently taking bookings for their 2014 Summer School via the contact details on the holding page. I'm sure many of my fellow dancers will take advantage of the opportunity to spend a week with this marvelous company! The company are also carrying out an ambitious programme of outreach work within the local community in South Wales, and again contact details for this are displayed on the website.

Ballet Cymru: "Romeo a Juliet"

Ballet Cyrnru is based in Newport which became notorious for a Jay Z take-off that many thought was better than the original. Of course, there is more to Newport than that.  It is the home of the Swyddfa Eiddo Deallusol ("Intellectual Property Office" to you sunshine) which keeps me busy. It also has The National Roman Legion Museum at Caerleon, one of the best archaeological museums in the country. It has a castle, cathedral, a university campus and curious bridge called The Transporter.  And of course, the ballet company.

The company has just produced a new version of Romeo and Juliet (or "Romeo a Juliet" as it prefers to call it) which will be premièred at the Riverfront Theatre in Newport on 3 May and then go on tour.  Appropriately their first port of call outside Wales will be Cumbria and Ayrshire where Welsh was once spoken.

I shall try to catch up with them at The Brewery Arts Centre in Kendal where they are performing on the 11.  I shall let you know how they get on.