A Rare Royal Triple Bill

"Serenade," "L'Invitation au Voyage," "Theme and Variations"
Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
London, England
October 28 - November 10, 2008

by Judith Cruickshank
copyright 2008 by Judith Cruickshank

Triple bills are something of a rarity at Covent Garden these days, when the repertory is based firmly around full length blockbusters which are assumed to be what will fill the house and also attract the new, younger audiences for which the management yearns. Personally, I suspect high ticket prices may have something to do with the lack of younger audiences, and reports of swathes of empty seats during the recent run of "Manon" would seem to undermine the view that full-evening works are all people want.

Either way, the mixed bill which opened on 28 October for a run of just five performances promised well; two Balanchine masterpieces and the revival of a ballet by an English choreographer, first given in 1982.

For the first few bars after the curtain rose on "Serenade" my heart sank. It looked as if we were going to get one of those well-drilled, well-mannered Royal Ballet performances where you can almost hear the corps de ballet counting. Then, all of a sudden it seemed the dancers heard the music and were swept away by it. This was especially true of Lauren Cuthbertson in the Russian dance. This choreography shows off her big, light jump to advantage, but more to the point you get the impression that she really loves performing it.

Marianela Nuñez was the waltz girl, a lovely interpretation and she really drew a response from her partner, the handsome, stylish but sometimes inexpressive Rupert Pennefather. But then who could resist a girl as enchanting as Nuñez. The only low spot came in the last movement when there seemed to be an attempt by all involved to add superfluous extra drama to the choreography by treating it as if it were a story ballet.

 Michael Corder, the choreographer of "L'Invitation au Voyage" is a Royal Ballet alumnus. A very promising dancer in his first years with the company, he sustained an injury which kept him off stage for some 18 months, and it was during this period he became seriously involved in choreography. Since that time he has danced with both Royal Ballet companies and made ballets for companies in the UK and overseas.

"L'Invitation au Voyage" is set to five songs by the French composer Henri Duparc and consists of a series of dances each taking their theme from the words of the song. The singer, the mezzo soprano Harriet Williams, is on stage and Corder has integrated her wonderfully with the dancers.

The original cast included what was then the cream of Royal Ballet talent, and this revival is cast from strength. The first song, Phylidé, is a pas de deux originally made for Stephen Sherriff and the young Alexandra Ferri — a difficult act to follow both for talent and for their exceptional physical beauty.

However Nuñez and the young Sergei Polunin rose to the challenge, he partnering strongly and she giving a performance that mirrored the sensuous ecstasy of Leconte de Lisle's words. La vie anteriéure features Leanne Benjamin and Federico Bonelli and a pas de trois for two men and a woman. Then comes Le Manoir de Rosamunde, which sets the men bounding about the stage.

Benjamin and Bonelli lead the next number where she awaits her lover who has gone to to the wars, and then finally comes the song which gives the work its title bringing the entrance of Edward Watson partnering the young Melissa Hamilton.

Corder has a real gift for making dances and he seems to be particularly attuned to Duparc's flowing melodies and the the stylised decadence of some of the lyrics. The designer, Yolande Sonnabend, sets the work in a golden pavilion with the dancers attractively clad in gilded tatters – though I think Bonelli could have been spared the flying helmet headgear which did little for Stephen Jefferies, the original wearer, and even less for poor Bonelli. And I found it interesting that despite the wealth of talent in both this and the original casts, it was Antoinette Sibley whose presence I most missed.

Nothing could provide a greater contrast to the fleeting charms of Corder's piece than "Theme and Variations" which I think of as the grandest of Balanchine's tutu ballets. Sad to say today's Royal Ballet doesn't seem to be very comfortable with 'grand', even with Tamara Rojo in the lead partnered by the handsome and attentive Bonelli.

The setting of blue drapes doesn't really help either. You can't help thinking that behind the pair on the backdrop lurks a coat rail with an abandoned mackintosh and two broken umbrellas. Nor do I particularly admire Peter Farmer's wishy washy pastel tutus, their bodices decorated with a nod in the direction of the sash of an order.

Rojo however turned in a performance of real authority, even making a decent attempt at the gargouillades which are now often replaced by a simple pas de chat. She, more than all the company's principal women knows how to play the ballerina. And no one could complain about the stylishness of Bonelli's performance.

Despite including two principal dancers, the four female demi-soloists made little impression but happily one could sit back, admire the leading couple, enjoy Barry Wordsworth's conducting of Tchaikovsky's score and wonder at Balanchine's ceaselessly inventive choreography.

Photos, all by Johan Persson, from top:
Lauren Cuthbertson in "Serenade."
Melissa Hamilton and Edward Watson in "L'Invitation au Voyage."
Tamara Rojo and Artists of The Royal Ballet in "Theme and Variations."