“E =
mc2”, “Tombeaux”, “Still Life at the Penguin Café”
Birmingham Royal Ballet
Sadler’s Wells Theatre
15-16 October 2013
by Judith Cruickshank
copyright 2013 by Judithi Cruickshank
Gremlins appear whenever the Birmingham
Royal Ballet moves into Sadler’s Wells Theatre, or so claimed David Bintley,
the company’s Artistic Director when he appeared before the waiting audience on
the first night of the company’s London season.
Not one but two small fires in the grid had broken out and damaged the
computerised flying system. Despite a
day spent trying to solve the problem Bintley regretted that “you won’t see my
ballets the way I would wish”.
With attractive costumes by Kate Ford and an effective commissioned score from Matthew Hindson, this is Bintley on top form. It was enthusiastically received at its first showing in 2009 and it’s surprising that it has not been given a second showing until now. Using a purely classical vocabulary Bintley has succeeded wonderfully in showing the contrasting qualities of the component elements.
In particular the Mass section conveys beautifully the idea of mass as bulk, with close groups of dancers, and also as weight as the three women are lifted and manipulated slowly and gently, each with two partnering men. In contrast Celeritas is supremely fast and light, the movement never ceasing, and the cast led by Maureya Lebowitch and Mathias Dingman must feel that their lungs are about to burst by the time the curtain falls. These sections are separated by a brief interlude entitled Manhattan Project which shows a woman posturing in a white kimono in front of a searing red background accompanied by the awe inspiring noise of an atomic explosion. In this as in all the ballet Peter Mumford’s lighting plays an important part.
“Tombeaux” was the oldest work on the programme. Premiered at Covent Garden in 1993 it was Bintley’s final work as Resident Choreographer of the Royal Ballet. The music is William Walton’s Variations on a theme by Hindemith with scenery and costumes – the most exquisite tutus for the women – by Jasper Conran, widely known as a fashion designer.
A Tombeau is a musical memorial to a dead master and the ballet is a homage to the choreographer’s two mentors; Ninette de Valois and more especially Frederick Ashton. In a programme note Bintley reveals publically for the first time that he viewed his ballet as a lament to ‘the end of British ballet as he had dreamt it to be’ and his farewell to ‘the institution that had embodied it’ (he resigned with the ballet half completed and had to be persuaded to stay and finish it).
The ballet employs a leading couple; Momoko Hirata and Joseph Caley at this performance, four supporting men and a corps de ballet of twelve women. Conran’s décor is lush and green, suggesting to me a formal garden, somewhat overgrown and falling slowly into decay, echoing the melancholy of Walton’s music. However it ends on a note of optimism; the last of the three backcloths is revealed to show a brighter, even sunlit, hue and the principal man runs of the stage to new ad ventures, leaving his ballerina alone, slowly turning.
The ensemble looked good; the women musical and accurate, though perhaps a little obviously careful, and the four supporting men danced strongly. But although the leading couple performed the steps well enough – the original cast of Bruce Sansom and Viviana Durante is a hard act to follow – there was a lack of style and no sense that this lovely ballet was anything more than a technical exercise rather than being a well-crafted and multi-layered work which deserves to be seen more widely.
The programme ended with “Still Life at the
Penguin Café”, Bintley’s light-hearted but heartfelt message about
conservation. There were outstanding
performances from Jamie Bond and from Chi Cao and his ensemble of hard-faced
women. This was as far as I could tell
the only work to suffer from the technical problems caused by the fires when
some Hayden Griffen’s attractive backdrops failed to appear. Happily the final tableau was intact showing all
those animals still clinging on to existence housed in an Ark, only the Great
Auk, the extinct original penguin, left alone outside.
The programme had a deservedly enthusiastic reception and it was a timely reminder of Bintley’s considerable and wide-ranging skills as a choreographer Audience demands and financial constraints mean that much of his recent work has concentrated on full-evening works with an obviously popular appeal. Next to come is “The Prince of the Pagodas”, which will be a completely new take on Benjamin Britten’s only ballet score. But it is to be hoped that circumstances will allow him to explore new forms and subjects which will allow him to expand his talents still further.
Photos:
The company in “E = mc2”. Photo by Roy Smiljanic.
The Brazilian Wooly Monkey from “Still Life at the
Penguin Café”. Photo by Bill Cooper.