By Joy McKay.
The Sleeping Beauty is a truly classical ballet in the Russian tradition. Based on the collaboration between composer Tchaikovsky with choreographer Marius Pepita from 1890, it is famously one of the hardest to perform.
A traditional tale with it’s origins in German folklore, the ballet follows the popularly know version first adapted by The Brothers Grimm but also retold through everything from Ladybird books to Disney films. It is a story we all know well.
Having previously enjoyed both the Birmingham Royal Ballet (choreographed by Peter Wright) and Matthew Bourne’s interpretations at the Mayflower Theatre, I was keen to see how the English National Ballet’s version would compare. Although drawing heavily from the original choreography of Pepita this production was created in 1987 by Kenneth MacMillan. Keeping many of the well-known set pieces but adding his own touches.
The story starts with the Christening party of baby Princess Aurora presented by her nursemaids. The lavish affair is hosted by her parents the King and Queen and attended by all the local dignitaries including fairies. Everyone has admired the child in turn, when the party is suddenly, and dramatically interrupted by The Fairy Carabosse (Fabian Reimair) – arriving on a smoking carriage, hauled by minions and furious she has not been invited to the soiree. His performance is camp and creepy, a drag vision of Vivienne Westwood and The Red Queen. The minions too, they are arachnid in movement and are made to appear conjured, almost other worldly, with full head masks. Carabosse is often cited as the inspiration for the archetypal magical villain and you can see elements of The Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz and Disney’s Maleficent, both portrayals MacMillan would have been aware of, in Reimair’s performance.
The evil fairy, so angry at being snubbed by the King and Queen, places a curse on the baby princess much to the horror of the guests, especially the Lilac Fairy. An exchange between the two is performed in mime, an element of the ballet which often scares-off new audiences. – a worry about understanding “the language of ballet” but this is a lovely example of how clear it can be. Much non-verbal communication is instinctive, indeed some of this mime echoes how similar concepts are communicated in British Sign Language. Carabosse tells the Lilac fairy of her curse; “Listen! Aurora will grow up, she will be beautiful, but then she will prick her finger and die”. The good fairy counters; “Listen! I love the baby, she will prick her finger but she will not die, she will sleep until woken by a kiss”.
Petipa worked closely with Tchaikovsky to create musical phrases for the choreography he had in mind, including which instruments should be used to represent certain characters. You will be very familiar with the glissando of the harp to indicate a benevolent fairy or pleasant magical event and the strike of kettle bell to indicate the appearance of a villain or an unpleasant surprise. That musical language has become part of our popular culture and now, 135 years since it’s composition, can be heard in Wicked and Stranger Things. The open orchestra pit always delights me and from our seats in The Circle we had a wonderful view of the musicians. As the ballet was presented in two parts (rather than the more traditional three) this meant that there were segments when the curtains were closed to accommodate set changes, so it was lovely to be able to really watch the musicians play.
The costumes are beautiful and the performances are incredible. The two principal women especially; Anri Sugiura as the Lilac Fairy and Sanguen Lee as the adult Aurora, are mesmerising, spending so long en pointe it seems beyond the ability of any human. This can be a long performance, but removing the second interval really reduces the running time. Combined with the familiarity of the story English National Ballet have produced a more accessible show for new ballet goers whilst maintaining the integrity of the piece for aficionados. Of the three productions I have been lucky enough to see recently, this has to be my favourite.
Runs until 29th November. For tickets and more information, visit the Mayflower Theatre website.
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