W.They come back when choreographers want to renew their belief in the possibilities of classical dance. sleeping beautyFrom Frederick Ashton to Alexei Ratmansky, Kenneth MacMillan to George Balanchine, and William Forsythe and Christopher Wheeldon, Marius Petipa’s 19th-century masterpieces guide you.
It has inspired others as well. The horned hat worn by the evil fairy Maleficent in the 1959 Disney cartoon is the 1946 Royal Ballet production that brought Ninette de Valois’ Baby Ballet to worldwide fame, and Oliver Messel’s Carabosse. I always wonder how much I am influenced by what I design for.
Monica Mason and Christopher Newton have faithfully recreated the design, and the Royal Ballet still dances today, with a strong sense of history wafting from the stage. Given the lack of stories to tell (a princess is born, throws a birthday party, falls asleep for 100 years, wakes up being kissed by a prince, throws another party) and precious subtext, its magic Whether or not I bow down entirely depends on how much fun it is to watch dancers tackle complex choreography today.
On opening night, I happily had both views. The retro nature of the staging annoys me (all the painted backgrounds and baggy satinbrich courtiers), but from the moment Thomas Whitehead’s picky emcee steps onto the stage, the fairy guest list I started rolling my eyes while checking the . I was mesmerized.
This is part of what The Royal Ballet brings to these traditional ballets. It’s an etching of the characters in a sense of drama, gestures and demeanor. It’s also on display when Kristen McNally’s Carabosse sweeps, blinks her eyes, and stamps her intimidating feet. There is a sense that it is right. It’s a foreign language, but it seems clear, especially since it’s so emphatically played by Fumi Kaneko’s glowing Lilac Fairy.
In general, the company has passed the ballet set test. After an uncertain start, all the fairies rose to the occasion, with Sophie Allnutt and Annette Bouvoli particularly eye-catching, and the entire cast creating filigree shapes, views of arms and legs. , where Calvin Richardson’s elegant Florestan, Joseph Cissens’ musical, high-flying Bluebird, and Micah Bradbury’s moody White Cat shone the brightest, but everyone did their roles brilliantly. accomplished.
Still every performance sleeping beauty Marianela Nunez gently finds a way to shape Aurora’s journey. She delights innocently in Rose Adagio’s famous pose, poetic and mysterious in her vision scenes, and triumphant in her wedding pas de deux glory.
Vadim Muntagirov equals her unfailing brilliance every step of the way. He appears only in the second act, but from that moment on, his presence, whether it be the way his head follows Nunez’s movements when she first appears, or the panache he lends to the partnership deepens ballet. Their dances are full of truth and they have a deep understanding of the traditions they follow.
